TOSHA issues no citations, fine, in death of 86-year-old at FedEx hub
The 86-year-old woman killed at the FedEx hub in November was crushed by a dolly being moved into place by a tug driver, according to a report by the state Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The Tennessee OSHA issued no citations or fines.
Verna Mae Jackson, 25-year employee of FedEx, was hit and pinned by a 2,500-pound dolly around 11:30 p.m. Nov. 29. She died on the way to Regional One Medical Center after several employees tried to intervene, according to a redacted report of the TOSHA investigation.
Verna Mae Jackson was hit and pinned by a 2,500-pound dolly Nov. 29, 2023. She died on the way to Regional One Medical Center after several employees tried to intervene, according to a report of the TOSHA investigation. (Courtesy D'Arcy Deveaux)
No charges were issued because the victim was between dollies carrying unit loading devices, the tin carriers shaped to fit the interior of planes. By company policy, employees are not to step between dollies.
Jackson was working in the address-correction area, retrieving packages that had been placed on the wrong conveyor belt and walking them to the appropriate line via a walkway on the south end of the hub, according to the report.
It is not clear why she was between the dollies, but several employees interviewed in the TOSHA investigation said Jackson sometimes did step in the gap between the units to pick up fallen packages.
The report indicates co-workers had told her she didn’t need to do that. Another indicated Jackson was “big on going above and beyond” and expected she may have been trying to deliver a package directly to the ramp agent by stepping in the gap left when a dolly carrying a full unit loading device was moved out.
There were no witnesses or video footage of the accident.
The tug driver that moved the empty carrier into the line reported hearing a scream as he pushed the dolly in place. He didn’t think much about it, he told the investigator, because he thought a package had fallen. When he heard other employees yelling, he realized what had happened.
He reported blowing the horn on the tug when he entered the building and also yelling “all clear” to alert anyone who may have been working inside the loading devices.
Other workers described hearing shouts that they initially thought was a fight in the old hub at 2903 Sprankel Ave. When they ran to see what was wrong, they saw Jackson, pinned beneath the front of the just-moved dolly.
A worker lifted the dolly up with a forklift and two employees told TOSHA they pulled Jackson out, noting that her breathing had become very shallow before EMS technicians arrived.
The report notes that due to “poor communication,” the EMS crew first went to “heavy weight” hub and had to be redirected to the scene. One worker said it took EMS “8-9 minutes” to arrive.
TOSHA reviewed FedEx training regime and Jackson’s specific participation in instruction about working around dollies.
Jackson was among a number of octogenarians who work at the hub. One of the requirements of the job is being able to lift 75 pounds.
Because Jackson did not have a husband or minor children who would get accidental death compensation through workers comp laws, FedEx must only pay a $20,000 death benefit to her family.
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Verna Mae Jackson FedEx Corp.Jane Roberts
Jane Roberts has reported in Memphis for more than 20 years. As a senior member of The Daily Memphian staff, she was assigned to the medical beat during the COVID-19 pandemic. She also has done in-depth work on other medical issues facing our community, including shortages of specialists in local hospitals. She covered K-12 education here for years and later the region’s transportation sector, including Memphis International Airport and FedEx Corp.
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