Fatal work injuries totaled 38 in 2017 for North Dakota, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported today. Assistant Commissioner for Regional Operations Charlene Peiffer noted that the number of work-related fatalities in North Dakota increased from 28 in the previous year. Fatal occupational injuries in the state have ranged from a high of 65 in 2012 to a low of 20 in 1992. (See chart 1.)

Nationwide, a total of 5,147 fatal work injuries were recorded in 2017, down slightly from the 5,190 fatal injuries reported in 2016, according to the results from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) program.

Type of incident

In North Dakota, transportation incidents resulted in 26 fatal work injuries. This category accounted for 68 percent of all workplace fatalities in the state. (See table 1.) The number of worker deaths from transportation incidents increased by 12 over the year.

Contact with objects or equipment was the second-most frequent fatal work event with 5 fatalities, down from 10 in the prior year.

Nationally, transportation incidents were the most frequent fatal workplace event in 2017, accounting for 40 percent of fatal work injuries. Falls, slips, or trips was the second-most frequent type of event (17 percent), followed by violence and other injuries by persons or animals (16 percent) and contact with objects and equipment (14 percent).

Industry

The private mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction industry had seven fatalities in North Dakota, up from four in the previous year. Seven workplace fatalities also occurred in the transportation and warehousing industry in 2017. (See table 2.) Transportation incidents was the most frequent fatal event in both industries. The support activities for mining sector accounted for six of the seven fatalities in the mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction industry. Within the transportation and warehousing industry, six of the seven worker deaths were in the truck transportation sector.

Occupation

The transportation and material moving occupational group and construction and extraction occupational group had the highest number of workplace fatalities with 15 and 12, respectively. (See table 3.) Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers accounted for 10 of the 15 fatalities among transportation and material moving occupations. Construction trades workers accounted for six fatalities among construction and extraction workers.

Additional highlights

• Men accounted for 97 percent of the work-related fatalities in North Dakota, compared to the 93-percent national share. (See table 4.) Transportation incidents made up 68 percent of the fatalities for men in North Dakota.

• White non-Hispanics accounted for 82 percent of those who died from a workplace injury. Nationwide, this group accounted for 67 percent of work-related deaths.

• Workers 25-54 years old accounted for 55 percent of the state’s work-related fatalities in 2017, the same as the national percentage.

• Of the 38 fatally-injured workers in North Dakota, 87 percent worked for wages and salaries; the remainder were self-employed. The most frequent fatal event for wage and salary workers and the self-employed workers was transportation incidents.

Technical Note

Background of the program. The Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI), part of the BLS Occupational Safety and Health Statistics (OSHS) program, compiles a count of all fatal work injuries occurring in the U.S. during the calendar year. The CFOI program uses diverse state, federal, and independent data sources to identify, verify, and describe fatal work injuries. This ensures counts are as complete and accurate as possible. For the 2017 national data, over 23,400 unique source documents were reviewed as part of the data collection process. For technical information and definitions for CFOI, please go to the BLS Handbook of Methods on the BLS website at www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/home.htm.

Federal/State agency coverage. The CFOI includes data for all fatal work injuries, even those that may be outside the scope of other agencies or regulatory coverage. Thus, any comparison between the BLS fatality census counts and those released by other agencies should take into account the different coverage requirements and definitions being used by each agency. More on the scope of CFOI can be found at www.bls.gov/iif/cfoiscope.htm and www.bls.gov/opub/hom/cfoi/concepts.htm.

Acknowledgments. BLS appreciates the efforts of all federal, state, local, and private sector entities that provided source documents used to identify fatal work injuries. Among these agencies are the Occupational Safety and Health Administration; the National Transportation Safety Board; the U.S. Coast Guard; the Mine Safety and Health Administration; the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (Federal Employees' Compensation and Longshore and Harbor Workers' Compensation divisions); the Federal Railroad Administration; the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; state vital statistics registrars, coroners, and medical examiners; state departments of health, labor, and industrial relations and workers' compensation agencies; state and local police departments; and state farm bureaus.

Information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (202) 691-5200; Federal Relay Service: (800) 877-8339.

Table 1. Fatal occupational injuries by event or exposure, North Dakota, 2016–17

Event or exposure (1)	2016	2017
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	28	38	100
Violence and other injuries by persons or animals	1	--	--
Intentional injury by person	1	--	--
Homicides (Intentional injury by other person)	1	1	3
Shooting by other person--intentional	1	1	3
Transportation incidents	14	26	68
Aircraft incidents	1	1	3
Other in-flight crash	1	1	3
Other in-flight crash into structure, object, or ground	--	1	3
Rail vehicle incidents	--	2	5
Collision between rail vehicle and another vehicle	--	2	5
Collision between rail and roadway vehicles	--	2	5
Pedestrian vehicular incident	--	3	8
Pedestrian struck by vehicle in nonroadway area	--	3	8
Pedestrian struck by forward-moving vehicle in nonroadway area	--	1	3
Pedestrian struck by vehicle backing up in nonroadway area	--	2	5
Roadway incidents involving motorized land vehicle	9	18	47
Roadway collision with other vehicle	--	10	26
Roadway collision--moving in opposite directions, oncoming	--	4	11
Roadway collision--moving perpendicularly	1	5	13
Roadway collision with object other than vehicle	--	3	8
Vehicle struck object or animal on side of roadway	--	3	8
Roadway noncollision incident	6	5	13
Jack-knifed or overturned, roadway	6	4	11
Nonroadway incident involving motorized land vehicles	4	1	3
Nonroadway collision with other vehicle	--	1	3
Moving in same direction, nonroadway	--	1	3
Fires and explosions	1	1	3
Explosions	1	1	3
Exposure to harmful substances or environments	--	3	8
Exposure to electricity	--	1	3
Direct exposure to electricity	--	1	3
Direct exposure to electricity, 220 volts or less	--	1	3
Contact with objects and equipment	10	5	13
Struck by object or equipment	9	5	13
Struck by powered vehicle--nontransport	7	3	8
Struck or run over by rolling powered vehicle	--	1	3
Struck by falling part of powered vehicle still attached	--	1	3
Struck by other falling powered vehicle	2	1	3
Footnotes: (1) Based on the BLS Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System (OIICS) 2.01 implemented for 2011 data forward.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 2. Fatal occupational injuries by industry, North Dakota, 2016–17

Industry (1)	2016	2017
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	28	38	100
Private industry	25	36	95
Natural resources and mining	13	12	32
Agriculture, forestry, fishing and hunting	9	5	13
Crop production	7	3	8
Oilseed and grain farming	1	1	3
Wheat farming	--	1	3
Animal production and aquaculture	2	--	--
Cattle ranching and farming	1	1	3
Mining, quarrying, and oil and gas extraction (2)	4	7	18
Mining (except oil and gas)	--	--	--
Nonmetallic mineral mining and quarrying	--	--	--
Other nonmetallic mineral mining and quarrying	--	--	--
All other nonmetallic mineral mining	4	7	18
Support activities for mining	4	6	16
Support activities for mining	4	6	16
Support activities for mining	4	6	16
Support activities for oil and gas operations	4	5	13
Construction	--	5	13
Construction	--	5	13
Heavy and civil engineering construction	--	--	--
Other heavy and civil engineering construction	--	1	3
Other heavy and civil engineering construction	--	1	3
Trade, transportation, and utilities	6	10	26
Wholesale trade	--	2	5
Merchant wholesalers, nondurable goods	--	2	5
Miscellaneous nondurable goods merchant wholesalers	--	2	5
Farm supplies merchant wholesalers	--	2	5
Transportation and warehousing	--	7	18
Truck transportation	--	6	16
General freight trucking	--	5	13
General freight trucking, long-distance	--	5	13
Financial activities	--	1	3
Real estate and rental and leasing	--	1	3
Rental and leasing services	--	1	3
Commercial and industrial machinery and equipment rental and leasing	--	1	3
Construction, transportation, mining, and forestry machinery and equipment rental and leasing	--	1	3
Construction, mining, and forestry machinery and equipment rental and leasing	--	1	3
Professional and business services	2	3	8
Professional and technical services	1	2	5
Professional, scientific, and technical services	1	2	5
Architectural, engineering, and related services	--	1	3
Engineering services	--	1	3
Other professional, scientific, and technical services	1	1	3
Veterinary services	--	1	3
Other services, except public administration	--	1	3
Other services, except public administration	--	1	3
Repair and maintenance	--	1	3
Automotive repair and maintenance	--	1	3
Other automotive repair and maintenance	--	1	3
Car washes	--	1	3
Government (3)	3	2	5
Federal government	--	1	3
Local government	3	1	3
Footnotes: (1) Industry data are based on the North American Industry Classification System, 2012. (2) Includes fatal injuries at all establishments categorized as Mining (Sector 21) in the North American Industry Classification System, 2012, including establishments not governed by the Mine Safety and Health Administration (MSHA) rules and reporting, such as those in Oil and Gas Extraction. (3) Includes fatal injuries to workers employed by governmental organizations regardless of industry.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 3. Fatal occupational injuries by occupation, North Dakota, 2016–17

Occupation (1)	2016	2017
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	28	38	100
Management occupations	9	3	8
Other management occupations	9	3	8
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	8	3	8
Farmers, ranchers, and other agricultural managers	8	3	8
Healthcare practitioners and technical occupations	--	1	3
Health diagnosing and treating practitioners	--	1	3
Veterinarians	--	1	3
Veterinarians	--	1	3
Protective service occupations	1	1	3
Law enforcement workers	1	1	3
Police officers	1	1	3
Police and sheriff's patrol officers	1	1	3
Office and administrative support occupations	--	1	3
Material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers	--	1	3
Postal service workers	--	1	3
Postal service mail carriers	--	1	3
Construction and extraction occupations	5	12	32
Supervisors of construction and extraction workers	--	1	3
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	--	1	3
First-line supervisors of construction trades and extraction workers	--	1	3
Construction trades workers	3	6	16
Carpenters	--	1	3
Carpenters	--	1	3
Construction laborers	--	3	8
Construction laborers	--	3	8
Other construction and related workers	--	--	--
Construction and building inspectors	--	1	3
Construction and building inspectors	--	1	3
Transportation and material moving occupations	10	15	39
Air transportation workers	--	1	3
Aircraft pilots and flight engineers	--	1	3
Commercial pilots	--	1	3
Motor vehicle operators	9	10	26
Driver/sales workers and truck drivers	9	10	26
Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers	9	10	26
Material moving workers	1	4	11
Laborers and material movers, hand	--	3	8
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	--	2	5
Footnotes: (1) Occupation data are based on the Standard Occupational Classification system, 2010.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Table 4. Fatal occupational injuries by selected demographic characteristics, North Dakota, 2016–17

Worker characteristics	2016	2017
	Number	Number	Percent
Total	28	38	100
Employee status
Wage and salary workers (1)	19	33	87
Self-employed (2)	9	5	13
Gender
Men	27	37	97
Women	1	1	3
Age (3)
20 to 24 years	--	1	3
25 to 34 years	3	7	18
35 to 44 years	3	8	21
45 to 54 years	9	6	16
55 to 64 years	9	9	24
65 years and over	3	7	18
Race or ethnic origin (4)
White (non-Hispanic)	25	31	82
Black or African-American (non-Hispanic)	--	--	--
Hispanic or Latino	--	--	--
Footnotes: (1) May include volunteers and workers receiving other types of compensation. (2) Includes self-employed workers, owners of unincorporated businesses and farms, paid and unpaid family workers, and may include some owners of incorporated businesses or members of partnerships. (3) Information may not be available for all age groups. (4) Persons identified as Hispanic or Latino may be of any race. The race categories shown exclude Hispanic and Latino workers.
NOTE: Data for all years are final. Totals for major categories may include subcategories not shown separately. Percentages may not add to totals because of rounding. CFOI fatality counts exclude illness-related deaths unless precipitated by an injury event. Dashes indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.