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Injuries from tire and wheel explosions during servicing
A Suruda1, D Floccare, G Smith
1Department of Emergency Medicine, University of Kentucky Medical Center, Lexington 40536.
Annals of Emergency Medicine
|August 1, 1991
Summary
Tire and wheel explosions cause severe injuries, particularly from truck tires. Safety measures like inflation cages have reduced incidents, but head injuries remain a concern, suggesting further protective gear is needed.
Area of Science:
- Occupational Safety
- Trauma Research
- Automotive Engineering
Background:
- Tire and wheel servicing presents significant risks of explosive incidents.
- Explosions can lead to severe injuries and fatalities, especially in commercial trucking operations.
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the incidence and nature of injuries resulting from tire and wheel explosions during servicing.
- To identify trends and contributing factors in these types of workplace injuries.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective analysis of injury data from multiple national safety organizations.
- Examination of reports spanning from 1978 to 1987 to capture historical trends.
Main Results:
- 694 injuries, including 143 fatalities, were reported between 1978 and 1987, primarily from truck tire explosions.
- Head injuries constituted a significant portion of both fatal (78%) and nonfatal (24%) incidents.
- Injuries during tire inflation decreased over the study period, potentially due to regulatory interventions.
Conclusions:
- Explosions from truck tires and rims are a serious occupational hazard.
- The implementation of safety cages has shown a positive impact on reducing inflation-related injuries.
- Further protective measures, such as helmet use, could mitigate severe head trauma in tire servicing.