Heavy Equipment Hazards
Tractor Rollover
A man died when the tractor he was operating overturned upside down pinning him underneath. The old tractor had a narrow (tricycle) front axle. It did not have a rollover protective structure (ROPS). A frontend loader was attached to the tractor's frame but no counter-weights had been installed for ballast. The loader with its bucket full of rocks was raised to nearly hood height. The tractor leaned to the right as the man steered it forward at a slight upward angle on a slope. The position of the heavy load, the absence of ballast, the tractor's configuration, the dynamics of the tractor-loader combination and its load in transport on the sloping, uneven terrain contributed to the sudden overturn of this tractor. ROPS and use of the seat belt would likely have prevented this man's death.
Source: Iowa FACE Program