Cable Puller Accident

During the construction of a Panera Bread restaurant, an electric supply cable was being pulled through an underground conduit by electricians. Their job was to connect the main electrical junction box of the restaurant to the main switch outside.

One worker was inside operating a cable puller machine while two others worked outside feeding the cable into the conduit. The cable puller is essentially a winch with pulleys that the operator uses to help him pull a rope that is attached to the stiff, heavy cable through the conduit.

The cable puller tipped over during this operation and the operator became tangled in the rope sustaining serious bodily injuries.

Drake Exhibits measured all the equipment and the site where the accident occurred. A 3D computer model was created to illustrate the equipment set up. Views of the reconstructed site were used in a PowerPoint to set the context of the accident, explain what the electricians were doing and show the function of the cable puller. The slide show was a critical part of the plaintiff's presentation at mediation.

for Thornton & Naumes, LLP
Boston, MA