November 5, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A measure, just signed into law by President Obama, would prohibit chemical companies from classifying safety information as “sensitive” in an effort to keep it from becoming public. The new law is in response to a workplace explosion that caused two fatalities.
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Tags: Bayer CropScience, chemical companies, sensitive information
October 14, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A dust explosion at a plant in Florida sent four workers to the hospital. One had to be airlifted to a burn center for critical injuries.
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Tags: combustible dust, dust explosion, serious burns
October 13, 2009 by Fred Hosier
OSHA has fined a waste processing company $207,800 after an investigation prompted by a fatality at the facility.
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Tags: fatality investigation, OSHA citation, rescue team
September 30, 2009 by Fred Hosier
Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and OSHA interim administrator Jordan Barab have said that a new combustible dust regulation is one of their rulemaking priorities at OSHA.
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Tags: combustible dust regulation, Hilda Solis, Imperial Sugar explosion, Jordan Barab
September 28, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A government agency says the February 2008 explosion and fire at the Imperial Sugar plant in Port Wentworth, GA, that killed 14 workers and injured 36 others, was caused by poor equipment design, maintenance and housekeeping.
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Tags: Chemical Safety Board, combustible dust, dust explosion and fire, Imperial Sugar explosion, poor housekeeping
September 16, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A government investigation says a chemical company failed to recognize a hazard associated with its manufacturing process even after a number of near-misses.
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Tags: near misses, T2 Laboratories explosion and fire, U.S. Chemical Safety Board
August 3, 2009 by Jim Burger
OSHA is doing something it hasn’t done in a long time: The federal agency has formed a task force to investigate a state workplace safety agency.
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Tags: Jordan Barab, Nevada, OSHA
July 21, 2009 by Fred Hosier
New regulations; accidents with multiple fatalities; the President-elect’s take on what OSHA should be doing. What is the top safety story of 2008?
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Tags: new regulations, Obama, OSHA, top 10
July 20, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A federal investigation appears to show that Imperial Sugar Co. didn’t train many workers at its Port Wentworth plant about how to escape during an emergency.
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Tags: federal investigation, Imperial Sugar explosion, OSHA investigation Imperial Sugar
July 7, 2009 by Fred Hosier
UCLA has dropped its appeal of safety citations in connection with a lab fire that claimed the life of an employee. But that may not be the end of trouble for the university in this case as another investigation has started.
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Tags: Cal/OSHA, Sheri Sangji, UCLA lab fire
July 6, 2009 by Fred Hosier
An investigation is underway to determine what caused a monorail at Walt Disney World in Florida to slam into another, killing one train’s driver.
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Tags: Disney World monorail crash, monorail death, monorail investigation
June 16, 2009 by Fred Hosier
Federal officials say a natural gas leak caused the explosion at ConAgra’s Slim Jim plant in Garner, NC, that killed 3 workers and injured 38 others.
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Tags: ConAgra Garner NC, natural gas leak, Slim Jim plant explosion
June 15, 2009 by Fred Hosier
Here’s a real-life story about the importance of alternate escape routes in case of fire or another emergency. It involves the recent explosion at the Slim Jim (ConAgra) plant in North Carolina.
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Tags: alternate routes, ConAgra Garner NC, fire drill, Slim Jim plant explosion
April 24, 2009 by Fred Hosier
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board says failure to follow proper chemical process safety management caused an explosion in West Virginia last year that killed two employees. One of the workers was hospitalized 41 days with burns before he died.
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Tags: Bayer CropScience explosion, process safety management, workaround
March 19, 2009 by Fred Hosier
Three employees suffered serious injuries in an explosion in Pasadena, CA, that ripped apart a delivery truck fueled by compressed natural gas.
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Tags: CAL-OSHA, compressed natural gas, explosion
March 3, 2009 by Fred Hosier
As of Jan. 12, 2009, OSHA can issue per-employee citations for personal protective equipment and training violations. Now we have an example of how the agency, under the Obama administration, plans to use its new, powerful weapon.
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Tags: chemical contamination, eyewash, hazardous chemicals, per-employee violation, PPE
February 17, 2009 by Fred Hosier
Next time you want to give employees a reminder about the hazards of loose clothing around machinery, you might want to use this story.
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Tags: General Duty Clause, jewelry, loose clothing, machine guarding, strangled
February 12, 2009 by Fred Hosier
OSHA isn’t the only federal safety and health agency that can come into your workplace to perform an investigation. The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) can enter a facility to investigate threats against employee health and safety.
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Tags: diacetyl, investigation, NIOSH, Sensient Flavors International
February 9, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A word to the wise for employees: When it comes to overhead utility lines, let the experts deal with them. This case shows the alternative can be deadly.
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Tags: electrocuted, tractor trailer, utility line
February 3, 2009 by Fred Hosier
As a safety pro, you’ve probably heard this claim: Once you get on OSHA’s inspection list, it’s tough to get off of it. A Midwest company can attest to that.
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Tags: carbon monoxide, fall protection, inspected, OSHA, violations
February 2, 2009 by Fred Hosier
OSHA investigations aren’t limited to manufacturing and construction. Investigators are looking into a fatality involving an acrobat at a golf tournament dinner.
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Tags: acrobat, Fatality, investigation, OSHA
January 28, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A monster truck show promoter died after accidentally stepping in front of a moving vehicle at a recent rally in Madison, WI.
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Tags: employee death, monster truck, OSHA
January 27, 2009 by Fred Hosier
An employee was hospitalized after he used a propane torch to thaw ice on a piece of work equipment.
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Tags: explosion, fractures, propane, thaw ice
January 9, 2009 by Fred Hosier
A lawsuit brought by victims of a deadly commuter rail crash accuses an engineer’s employer of ignoring complaints that the engineer regularly used his cellphone while operating trains.
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Tags: cellphones, injured, killed, rail crash, texting
December 11, 2008 by Fred Hosier
Defective welds likely caused the collapse of a tank last month, spilling about 2 million gallons of liquid fertilizer and injuring four people.
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Tags: Chemical safety, Injuries, investigation, spill
December 4, 2008 by Fred Hosier
Safety Manager Doug Nugent’s problem: He wanted employees to speak up more often about near-misses.
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Tags: Injuries, Investigations, near misses
December 3, 2008 by Fred Hosier
A Wisconsin company will pay a hefty fine for OSHA violations connected to an explosion that injured two workers, forced a mile-wide evacuation and seriously damaged a building.
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Tags: explosion, Injuries, OSHA fine, propane
November 25, 2008 by Fred Hosier
Do you have employees who work with or come in contact with natural gas pipes? Here’s a cautionary tale of what can go wrong when natural gas isn’t dealt with properly.
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Tags: critical burns, destroyed, explosion, fines, natural gas
November 11, 2008 by Fred Hosier
Dressing properly for workplace safety includes more than wearing the right protective gear. Employees also have to know what they shouldn’t wear, such as loose-fitting clothing.
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Tags: loose-fitting clothes, permanently disfigured, protective gear
October 24, 2008 by Fred Hosier
When OSHA inspects chemical plants, petroleum refineries and other complex operations, any process safety violations will add up quickly to significant fines.
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Tags: inspection, OSHA fine, process safety
October 24, 2008 by Fred Hosier
A fire and explosion at a plant in Iowa was caused by inadequate electrical bonding and grounding during the filling of a portable steel tank used to store a flammable liquid, according to a federal investigation.
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Tags: explosion, fire, grounding
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