OSHA probes North Huntingdon skid loader accident

Workplace safety investigators have launched a probe into an accident that injured a man this week as he was using a skid loader to dump dirt over a hillside in North Huntingdon. The worker was ejected as the equipment slid 150 feet to the bottom of a ravine, emergency responders said.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration in Pittsburgh initiated an inspection of Tuesday’s accident, said Lenore Uddyback-Fortson, a spokeswoman for OSHA.

OSHA has no more information to release now “other than the investigation is open, ongoing, and we have up to 6 months to complete our inspection,” Uddyback-Fortson said.

The skid loader operator, who was not identified by emergency responders, was hospitalized with unspecified injuries Hartford Heights Deputy fire Chief Mark Gibas described as non-life-threatening.

The operator was moving dirt about 3 p.m. to expand a parking area behind the Norwin Commerce Center at 2801 Route 30, Gibas said. The dirt spread atop the snow gave way, and the skid loader slid down the steep hillside, ejecting the operator before it overturned. The man landed near the equipment, Gibas said.

Emergency medical personnel were directed over the slippery hillside to pull the man to safety.

Vincent Naccarati, whose Naccarati Contracting, Excavating & Concrete dump truck was at the site, could not be reached for comment. Naccarati is listed as the president of the Monroeville company, according to Pennsylvania Department of State corporation records.

The property is owned by Paul Samios of Delmont, according to the Westmoreland County tax map. Samios could not be reached for comment.

North Huntingdon code enforcement officer Joshua Andrykovitch said Wednesday he was not aware of the dirt being spread over the hillside but did not believe there were any code violations in connection with the work.

The skid loader was removed from the scene Wednesday.