Driver died when Head became trapped in tailgate of vehicle

A lorry driver died after his head became trapped in the tailgate of his vehicle while making a delivery to a shopping centre, an inquest heard. Gary Leslie Pickering, of Swinton, Manchester, was found by a security guard in the loading bay at Dudley’s Churchill Shopping Centre.

An inquest was opened and adjourned at Smethwick Coroners Court. The hearing was told that the security guard had rushed to the loading bay after an alarm went off at the centre.

The guard saw the delivery vehicle parked up and found Mr Pickering, 34, of Chepstow Road, slumped beside it with his head trapped by the tailgate.

Senior coroner Mr Robin Balmain said: “CCTV images taken at the scene suggest the tailgate had become stuck and Mr Pickering was attempting to free it.” ... “At the time he was making a delivery for the company he worked for.” Mr Balmain said that a post mortem has revealed the medical cause of death to be asphyxia. But he added more information was still needed and adjourned the inquest until a later date for more inquiries to be made. A date was not set for when the inquest will resume.

Environmental officers from Dudley Council launched an investigation immediately after Mr Pickering’s death. The authority has refused to comment further until this has been fully completed. Officers have been assisted by officials from Home Bargains, which uses the bay off King Street.

It was originally believed that Mr Pickering had been crushed by a metal shutter at the loading bay. The loading area remained sealed off throughout last Tuesday as the investigation into what happened got under way.

It was reopened again by the following morning. Police confirmed at the time they were not investigating the matter but said they had been called out to the loading bay where a man had been found with serious injuries. Both shoppers and business owners at the shopping precinct were left shocked and saddened by what had happened to Mr Pickering. Following his death, Councillor Tracy Wood, cabinet member for environment and culture, said: “Our thoughts are very much with his family at this time.”

Carbon Monoxide Exposure

Carbon monoxide exposure from light and heavy goods vehicles and powered goods handling equipment, such as forklifts, presents a serious health risk to employees who work on loading bays. To eliminate or reduce exposure to the gas take the following steps: Instruct gas powered forklift truck drivers to turn off their engines when parked. Consider instead using electric powered fork lifts. Goods vehicle engines must be switched off when parked and bay doors closed until the vehicle is safely on the loading bay. Install a carbon monoxide alarm and test it regularly. Use local exhaust ventilation to remove carbon monoxide. And, make sure there is enough ventilation to remove carbon monoxide even when doors and windows are shut.

Keep loading docks dry

Water on the loading dock creates a hazardous situation for employees. It can also destroy merchandise. Water damage most commonly occurs when rain or melting snow flows onto the trailer bed and dock leveller, off the roof of trailers. The use rain diversion seals can be a cost-effective way to prevent water infiltration. These seals keep the building operator from having to re-lay the loading bay approach or rebuild the dock face to keep employees and goods dry. Your company should be in a position to want to provide good protection against the elements. However, as with most loading dock equipment, the equipment must be able to withstand repeated uses under a variety of weather and loading conditions. Any manufacturer offering any increase in longevity of the dock seals over their competitors should therefore be something to consider.

Loading Bay Lamps

Most trailers are not equipped with internal lighting, so it’s a good idea to fit dock lights to improve visibility. Otherwise, operatives entering the vehicle from a brightly lit warehouse can struggle to adjust to the change in conditions and may not see potential hazards, causing injury to themselves or potentially damaging goods. The more useful types of lamps are those that are mounted on an arm which pivots at the wall and in the centre. They then can be parked against the wall of the loading bay when not in use.

What are loading bays?

Loading bays are the areas within a warehouse where incoming and outgoing goods are loaded and unloaded from a road vehicle. Normally this will mean articulated lorries and trailers that are serviced by forklift trucks or pedestrian trucks. The loading/unloading will take place either from the side of a curtain sided trailer or more commonly, the back of a solid sided box bodied trailer.

Dock Buffers

Dock buffers, also known as dock bumpers, reduce the wear and tear and damage to both loading bay equipment and the building, and will consequently significantly reduce maintenance costs. We complement our range of loading bay equipment with a number of different types of Heavy Duty Dock buffers. Serious consideration should always be given to fitting the appropriate type of dock buffers.