Finding into death of Cameron James Ferry
Deceased
Cameron James Ferry
Demographics
34y, male
Date of death
2020-07-26
Finding date
2022-07-27
Cause of death
Chest injuries sustained when crushed by tip truck
AI-generated summary
Cameron James Ferry, a 34-year-old earthmoving business owner, died when crushed by a tipper truck body while performing repair work. Following a previous incident where the tipper body detached due to overloading with sticky clay, Ferry undertook repairs himself despite initial quotes of $7000-$10000. He tack-welded hinges and used an unsecured steel body prop to support the raised tipper body while working underneath. The body prop failed under the weight of the tipper body (2200-3000kg), causing it to descend and crush Ferry. Clinical lessons: Although not a medical case, this highlights risks of inadequate safety systems and lack of secondary support mechanisms. Best practice requires body props be permanently secured at both ends, with secondary support devices like wooden chocks or suspended crane support. The coroner identified gaps in VSB6 guidance regarding safe body prop design and use.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- Body prop failure due to inadequate design and installation
- Body prop not secured at both ends
- Absence of secondary safety measures or support devices
- Tipper body not fitted with upper anchor point or locating mechanism
- Lack of formal work method statement and risk assessment
- Work performed on damaged truck without professional engineering oversight for final assembly
- Absence of secondary contact point on body prop design
Coroner's recommendations
- The National Heavy Vehicle Regulator should consider amending Vehicle Standards Bulletin (VSB6) or issue a Vehicle Standards Guide to provide clearer guidance on best practice when installing and working with body props on trucks fitted with a tipper body
Full text
Related cases
Source and disclaimer
This page reproduces or summarises information from publicly available findings published by Australian coroners' courts. Coronial is an independent educational resource and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or acting on behalf of any coronial court or government body.
Content may be incomplete, reformatted, or summarised. All court orders for redaction and non-publication are respected; documents with technically defective redaction have been excluded from the database entirely. Always refer to the original court publication for the authoritative record.
Copyright in original materials remains with the relevant government jurisdiction. AI-generated summaries and tagging are for educational purposes only, may contain inaccuracies, and must not be treated as legal documents. We welcome feedback for correction —