Senator Jay Rockefeller (D-WV) originally drafted The American Communities Right to Public Information Act as a separate piece of legislation. It was passed into law as part of an appropriations bill for The Department of Homeland Security.

The amendment makes clear that the Sensitive Security Information designation created by recent homeland security laws can’t be used to withhold information that the government should share with the public.

The legislation was drafted in response to the Bayer CropScience explosion in August 2008 that killed two workers in Institute, WV.

The U.S. House Energy and Commerce Committee accused Bayer of using a “campaign of secrecy” regarding the explosion.

The committee said Bayer withheld critical information from emergency responders and investigators from the U.S. Chemical Safety Board.

The appropriations bill says information may not be designated as security sensitive “to conceal a violation of law, inefficiency, or administrative error … to prevent embarrassment to a person, organization or agency … to restrain competition … or to prevent or delay the release of information that doesn’t require protection in the interest of transportation security, including basic scientific research information.”

Police in Port Panama City say the explosion happened in two dust collectors. An investigation will determine what triggered it.

Authorities say it started in an area where a coating is put on pipes.

The facility will be shut down for several days while OSHA investigates.

After going from three shifts to one and briefly shutting down in December, Monday — the day of the blast — was the first time that all three shifts were up and running again.

Federal statistics show, in a 25-year period, 281 combustible dust explosions and fires killed 119 workers and injured 718.

This week, our SafetyNewsAlert.com Quick Poll was on combustible dust. We asked: Do you think OSHA needs a new standard on combustible dust?

• 51% said no, OSHA should use its existing regulations, and
• 49% said yes, current regulations aren’t enough.

A total of 430 readers voted. Check our home page for a new poll later this week.

In April, Charles Sittig was killed at the CES Environmental Services facility in Port Arthur, TX.

Three men have died at CES plants since December 2008.

OSHA cited the company for 34 violations, including a willful citation for failure to establish a rescue team capable of assisting a worker who becomes incapacitated while cleaning out chemicals tanks.

Other citations include raised platforms without railings, poorly maintained ladders and failure to develop decontamination procedures.

The company has 15 days to decide whether to contest the citations.

Two workers died recently at CES’ Houston plant. In December 2008, one worker died in an explosion that sent metal debris into nearby properties. In July 2009, a CES employee died when an explosion and flash fire at the Houston plant knocked him from the top of a mobile tank he was filling with water. OSHA is still investigating that death.

And the rulemaking process is moving along.

OSHA has submitted the proposed regulation to the Office of Management and Budget for review.

That news comes in the wake of the Chemical Safety Board’s recent release of its investigation into the explosion and fire that killed 14 and injured 36 at the Imperial Sugar plant in Wentworth, GA.

In a 25-year period, 281 combustible dust explosions and fires killed 119 workers and injured 718.

A number of OSHA standards address aspects of combustible dust control, including those on housekeeping, emergency action plans, ventilation, spray finishing, permit required confined spaces and electric power generation.

Do you think a separate OSHA standard on combustible dust is necessary? Let us know what you think in the Comments Box below, and take our Quick Poll on our home page.

In its final report on the explosion, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) said ongoing releases of sugar from poorly designed and maintained dust collection equipment, conveyors, and sugar handling equipment led to the blast.

Inadequate housekeeping allowed highly combustible sugar dust to build up throughout the plant’s packing buildings.

A conveyor had been enclosed, creating a confined, unventilated space where sugar dust could accumulate to an explosive concentration. It’s likely the dust was ignited by an overheated bearing.

The initial explosion caused a cascade of secondary dust explosions in adjacent packing buildings.

On top of these problems, the CSB said Imperial hadn’t conducted evacuation drills for its employees and that the explosions and fires disabled most of the emergency lighting, making it difficult for workers to escape.

A 2006 CSB study identified 281 combustible dust fires and explosions between 1980 and 2005 that killed 119 workers and injured 718, and extensively damaged industrial facilities. In April, OSHA started development of a combustible dust standard. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) has recommended practices for preventing dust fires and explosions.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has found that the explosion and fire that killed four employees at T2 Laboratories in Jacksonville, FL, on Dec. 19, 2007, was caused by a runaway chemical reaction that likely resulted from an inadequate reactor cooling system.

The CSB report says T2 didn’t recognize all of the potential hazards of its manufacturing process.

The explosion was so powerful that 28 people working at nearby businesses were injured when building walls and windows blew in. The blast damaged buildings within a quarter-mile of the T2 facility.

Reactive chemical hazards are a major cause of workplace deaths and serious injuries. A previous CSB report identified 167 incidents over a two-decade period and made recommendations to improve reactive chemical safety.

The Las Vegas Sun reports that Labor Department officials and officials from other states have descended on Nevada to scrutinize how it investigates workplace accidents.

The Sun ran a series of articles last year — for which it won a Pulitzer Prize — detailing serious problems with worker safety in Nevada. During an 18-month stretch, 12 construction workers were killed on the Las Vegas Strip.

Acting OSHA head Jordan Barab had warned state officials that the feds planned to intensify their monitoring of state plans.

OSHA’s only enforcement tool is complete takeover of a state agency, something it’s never done. But OSHA observers say this intervention is the most dramatic in a state plan since 1991, when the feds strongly considered taking over North Carolina’s state plan.

A report is expected to be issued in about a month.

We polled our editors of safety publications at Progressive Business and came up with this list:

10. More research on dangers of nano-particles to exposed employees. Among the new studies, one that showed long, thin carbon nanotubes exhibited the same effects as long, thin asbestos fibers when injected into mice.

9. The National Institutes of Health says the superbug methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is no longer limited to hospitals. Outbreaks of one strain — community-associated MRSA — have turned up in athletes, prison inmates, the military, daycare attendees and those who live in communal conditions such as college dormitories.

8. MSHA proposes and enacts a flurry of new mining rules in the wake of previous years’ mining disasters, such as Crandall Canyon, including: a policy letter on underground communication and tracking devices; a new final rule that increases the pounds per square inch that pressure seals must withstand in an explosion; a proposal to test miners for drugs and alcohol; and a final rule requiring additional safety equipment for rescue teams at underground mines.

7. California gets serious with heat stress on the job. The company that hired a pregnant teen who died of heat stroke this spring after working in a vineyard without enough shade or water was hit with the highest fine ever issued to a farming operation in the state. Merced Farm Labor’s license was also revoked until Aug. 24, 2011 after the death of Maria Jimenez.

6. The employer payment for most types of PPE rule takes effect. OSHA started enforcing the new rule May 15, 2008. The only exceptions: non-specialty safety-toe protective footwear; shoes or boots with built-in metatarsal protection requested by an employee; logging boots; and everyday work or ordinary clothing used solely for protection from weather.

5. An explosion at an Imperial Sugar Refinery near Savannah, GA, kills 14 people and injures dozens more. The blast destroyed a packaging plant. The cause, ignition of dust, placed an emphasis on workplace ignitable dust hazards.

4. Amendment to the Americans with Disabilities Act to place burden on employers. The revision may dramatically increase the number of employees who can legally qualify as disabled. Action step for employers and those in charge of safety: Instead of an open-ended light-duty assignment that might define a worker as disabled, re-assess the returning worker’s condition every two weeks.

3. Distracted drivers prove fatal and costly. A Sept. 12 collision between two trains in California killed 25 people. The National Transportation Safety Board is still investigating, but preliminary information shows the locomotive engineer of one train was using his cell phone to text within 30 seconds of the accident. In the wake of the crash, the Federal Railroad Administration enacted a new rule banning railroad employees from using cell phones (except in emergencies) and other electronic devices on the job. In another case, International Paper Co. agreed to pay $5.2 million to settle a personal injury lawsuit after one of its employees used her cell phone while driving for work. The employee hit another car, and its driver had to have an arm amputated as a result.

2. Now OSHA can multiply PPE and training fines by the number of employees. Under a new rule, OSHA can issue per-employee citations for those types of violations starting Jan. 12, 2009.

1. President-elect Barack Obama promises an “invigorated” OSHA. Obama supported the Protecting America’s Workers Act as a Senator. The bill would increase OSHA penalties. Obama has also called on OSHA to issue standards “in a timely and more effective manner.” While the financial crisis may delay some reforms the new administration may want, some changes can be made by just shifting existing funding.

Vote for your top safety story or nominate one of your own in the Comments Box below.

Explosions at the plant killed 14 people and injured many more.

Interviews conducted by OSHA with plant workers uncovered the alleged lack of training, according to The Savannah Morning News.

OSHA is seeking $8.8 million in fines for alleged safety violations at two Imperial plants. Imperial is appealing.

About 40 workers said they didn’t receive training on how to get out of the building in an emergency. Only about 30 people said they were shown how to leave.

Just 5 people ever recalled a fire drill at the plant.

Former corporate safety manager Michael Lastie said in a sworn statement that the company lacked a document that “clearly spelled out … the roles and responsibilities of the first responder team.”

Creating such a document was a recommendation made to the company after a 2004 safety evaluation.

Imperial also faces lawsuits from victims’ families.

Lab assistant Sheri Sangji was burned over about half of her body and died 18 days after the lab fire. She was transferring about 2 ounces of t-butyl lithium from one sealed container to another when a plastic syringe fell apart in her hands.

The chemical ignited when it was exposed to air, setting her rubber gloves and synthetic sweater on fire.

UCLA paid $31,875 in fines for violations including Sangji’s lack of a special fire-resistant lab coat and lack of proper employee training.

However, it appealed the citations for a technical reason: so that the citations couldn’t be used against UCLA in any future proceeding, such as a lawsuit.

In a written statement, UCLA said, “The university wants to direct its resources to strengthening laboratory safety programs and building a model for other institutions to follow … our limited appeal of Cal/OSHA’s citations has detracted from that effort.”

Meanwhile, Cal/OSHA chief Len Welsh will oversee a criminal investigation of the fatal fire, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Sangji’s family has criticized Cal/OSHA’s civil probe as inadequate.

If Cal/OSHA finds evidence of a crime, it will turn the case over to the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office for possible prosecution.

The accident happened Sunday at about 2 a.m.

The crash claimed the life of 21-year-old employee Austin Wuennenberg. Six guests were treated on the scene for minor injuries. The driver of the other monorail was also taken to the hospital with minor injuries.

One early theory among people involved with Disney’s monorail system is that one of the trains was switching tracks, which requires the monorail pilot to override the anti-crash system, according to the Orlando Sentinel.

The monorails have data recorders which may provide more information on the cause of the crash.

Wuennenberg was a student at nearby Stetson University. One of his former classmates is quoted as saying the young man scheduled his classes around his Disney job and took precautions if he was working a night shift.

Brandon Ross says his friend would make the hour-long drive to the Orlando area the day before his shift so he wouldn’t be tired when he operated the train.

In an online profile, Wuennenberg referred to working 12- and 14-hour shifts recently.

The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) says the gas ignited in a room housing vacuum pumps for sealing the snacks.

The ATF believes the gas was sparked by equipment such as a fan motor or thermostat, but another cause, such as static electricity, can’t be ruled out yet.

OSHA and the Chemical Safety Board are both conducting further investigations.

About 300 workers were inside the plant at the time of the explosion. Of the 38 injured, 4 received critical burns.

See our previous story here regarding this explosion and emergency evacuation plans.

Among the stories from workers who had to flee the plant is the one told by Janelle Lynch.

“I saw a fire, and things just started exploding,” she said.

Lynch planned to leave through the cutting department, but the roof started to collapse.

She made it to safety by going in the other direction and getting out through a warehouse.

Safety managers we know block some exits during fire drills to force employees to quickly find another way out.

Three bodies have been recovered from the ConAgra Foods plant in Garner, NC. Officials say 38 other employees were injured, including four with critical burns.

The U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives says a natural gas leak caused the explosion. The Chemical Safety Board has sent a team to conduct a more extensive investigation.

Do you take any steps to make sure employees know multiple ways to exit your building in case of a fire or other emergency? Let us know about what you do in the Comments Box below.

The explosion and fire at the Bayer CropScience plant last August was caused by a thermal runaway reaction during production of insecticide.

A vessel ruptured and flew about 50 feet through the air, demolishing equipment, twisting steel beams, and breaking pipes and conduits.

Eight others were treated and released from a local hospital for chemical exposure.

The CSB says the situation could have been even worse. The explosion happened within 80 feet of a pressure vessel containing more than 13,000 pounds of methyl isocyanate (MIC). That’s the same chemical that caused thousands of deaths in Bhopal, India, 25 years ago.

The preliminary results also state that the explosion was partially caused by a workaround which involved defeating safety interlocks. Plant management had known about the workaround for some time.

OSHA had already fined Bayer $143,000. Bayer is contesting those fines. CSB doesn’t have the authority to issue fines.

The investigation is continuing. The CSB wanted to release preliminary information for the benefit of residents near the plant.

For more information on the CSB investigation, click here.

All three men were hospitalized, with one in critical and two in serious condition.

The incident occurred while employees of California Linen Services, dba Dy-Dee Diaper Service, were refueling a delivery truck that operates on compressed natural gas (CNG), according to the Pasadena Star-News.

Investigators believe the vehicle’s fuel tank exploded, destroying the truck. The tank shot about 1,000 feet into the air and landed about 200 feet away. No one was injured by the falling tank.

The explosion caused an estimated $112,000 in damage to vehicles and the linen company building’s contents.

Witnesses said the explosion felt like an earthquake.

Cal-OSHA is investigating and won’t release any information about possible causes until its investigation is complete.

Federal OSHA has regulations for the regular inspection and maintenance of CNG storage cylinders.

OSHA 1910.101 requires fueling station operators to conduct regular visual inspections to determine that compressed gas cylinders are in a safe condition.

Cylinders must be retested every five years, including a visual internal and external examination together with a test by interior hydrostatic pressure in a water jacket or other suitable apparatus.

State OSHA rules must be as strict, but can be more stringent, than the federal regulations.

OSHA has proposed more than $1.2 million in penalties relating to the handling of hazardous chemicals at G.S. Robins & Co., dba Ro-Corp, Inc., in East St. Louis, MO.

Ro-Corp faces 21 willful citations, 20 of which were cited on a per-instance basis:

• 8 instances of failing to provide employees with the correct PPE for transferring para-nitroaniline (PNA), a poison
• 4 instances of failing to provide training on the use of PPE and on working with hazardous chemicals
• 3 instances of failing to provide PPE training and training on specific PNA-transfer procedures, and
• 5 instances of failing to fit-test employees using respirators.

OSHA also issued a repeat citation for failing to provide an eyewash/shower in corrosive chemical areas and 16 serious citations for hazards associated with the transfer of PNA and other workplace practices.

PNA is highly toxic and can be fatal if swallowed, inhaled or absorbed through the skin.

OSHA investigated Ro-Corp after learning that employees had been admitted to several local hospitals after being contaminated with an unknown powder that turned out to be PNA. All employees recovered after treatment.

To learn more about OSHA’s ability to issue fines on a per-employee basis, click here.

A car wash employee in Easthampton, MA, was nearly strangled when her scarf got caught in a rotating scrubber brush.

The brush latched onto Stephanie Carpluk’s scarf, cinched it tight and prevented her from breathing, according to The Republican.

Carpluk says she was walking through the car wash tunnel at the Golden Nozzle, on her way to the office to get change, when the incident happened.

She was rescued from the scrubber by a car wash customer. He jumped out of his car as it was going through the car wash, cut Carpluk free using a pocket knife, and performed mouth-to-mouth to restore her breathing.

Carpluk spent three days in a hospital and is recuperating at home. She has bruises around her neck and under her eyes.

OSHA has already visited the car wash to investigate.

Golden Nozzle owner Steven Roberts says his company has a policy regarding what employees should wear.

Carpluk said she often wore her scarf to work.

An incident involving a scarf is certainly rare. Loose-fitting shirt sleeves, pant legs or dangling jewelry are more likely to cause a problem that could lead to serious injury or even death.

While OSHA’s machine guarding regulations don’t address loose clothing or jewelry, if a company doesn’t address such hazards in its safety plan, it could be cited under the General Duty Clause.

NIOSH can’t issue fines. According to its Web site, NIOSH “is the federal agency responsible for conducting research and making recommendations for the prevention of work-related injury and illness.”

In its efforts to research the health impact on workers who deal with the food flavoring diacetyl, NIOSH conducted an investigation at Sensient Flavors International in Indianapolis at the request of the local Teamsters union representing the plant’s workers. Diacetyl has killed several and sickened hundreds of food plant workers.

The Teamsters told the Seattle Post-Intelligencer’s senior correspondent Andrew Schneider that Sensient had altered its production process while NIOSH was inspecting and taking air samples. The union claims NIOSH didn’t get an accurate look at normal conditions at the plant.

NIOSH uncovered “pulmonary abnormalities” in its first inspection and demanded a second look to gather more information.

Sensient is fighting NIOSH’s request, saying that the agency is “attempting to use Sensient’s facility as its own personal laboratory.” It says the agency can look once, but not twice.

The case is now in federal court.

OSHA is considering a regulation on diacetyl and food flavorings.

The driver of a tractor trailer was electrocuted in Tulsa, OK, after the vehicle’s load got tangled with overhead utility lines.

The truck was transporting a large heat exchanger which was too high to go under a cable TV line. The driver, 26-year-old Robert Young, climbed on top of the heat exchanger to try to move the cable TV line when the exchanger touched an electric line energized with 4,200 volts.

The Tulsa Fire Department used a bucket truck to remove Young from the top of the heat exchanger, but he was already dead, according to KOTV-TV.

The Oklahoma Department of Public Safety is checking into whether the escort vehicle was equipped with a required pole to check for wires that would interfere with the load.

The transport company, Stone Trucking, specializes in moving oversize loads.

Here are some reminders you can give employees if a vehicle they’re driving comes in contact with power lines or if they come upon fallen lines:

• Treat all downed power lines, and anything in contact with them, as energized.
• Keep people and vehicles at least 10 yards away from fallen lines.
• If a power line has fallen on your vehicle, stay inside it until help comes. Try to drive the vehicle away so it’s no longer in contact with the lines.
• Call the power company immediately, and
• Don’t approach fallen lines until power company representatives confirm it’s safe.

Certified Painting Co., Inc., of Alsip, IL, faces $225,000 in fines for 17 alleged violations — eight willful and nine serious.

That’s bad enough. But this is the 16th time the company has been inspected by OSHA since 1976. It’s been cited for more than 100 safety and health violations.

In the latest case, Certified has cited for failure to:

• have proper carbon monoxide monitoring devices
• provide and ensure workers were using personal protective equipment
• provide required hygiene facilities
• ensure workers conducted required hygiene practices after possible exposure to lead or other hazardous materials
• provide U.S. Coast Guard-approved life jackets and have a lifesaving skiff immediately available at locations where employees were working over or adjacent to water
• provide proper fall protection for employees working on scaffolding
• maintain a safety and health program
• provide a required training program before employee exposure to lead, and
• conduct regular inspections of the job site by a competent person.

You can read more about OSHA’s citations against Certified here.

Jose Angel Vera was performing an aerial stunt about 20 feet above the floor of a large tent at the FBR Open in Scottsdale, AZ.

As he was descending, he fell from the rafters onto the asphalt-covered ground, hitting his head, according to KXNV-TV.

The ground was asphalt.

He was taken to a local hospital where he died about 15 minutes after the incident.

Vera was a member of Aerial Artistry, a five-member acrobatics team. Vera performed acrobatics for 16 years.

OSHA is investigating because Vera was working at the time of the incident — in other words, it’s a workplace accident.

Now, OSHA is investigating.

Another element of this case makes it even more bizarre: The promoter, George Eisenhart, had defended his industry’s safety record in the news media just days before his death.

A statement from the Monster Truck Racing Association says Eisenhart walked in front of a moving vehicle in such a way that the driver didn’t have enough time to react, according to CNN.

Eight days before Eisenhart’s death, a six-year-old boy was killed by flying debris at a monster truck show in Tacoma, WA.

The promoter talked about the safety of monster truck shows in an interview with a Madison TV station just before the event.

Trent Sack suffered multiple arm, leg and vertebra fractures while using a propane torch to thaw ice from inside a mechanical foot at a BNI coal mine in Center, ND.

The torch went out, and gas leaked. The gas exploded after Sack moved the opening cover of the mechanical foot aside and oxygen rushed in, according to the Bismarck Tribune. No fire resulted from the explosion.

The company reported the incident to the Mine Safety and Health Administration, which conducted an investigation. No word on whether the company will be fined.

Federal investigators say the engineer, Robert Sanchez, sent a text message 22 seconds before his train collided with a Union Pacific freight train on Sept. 12, killing 25 and injuring more than 130.

A Connex employee said he called managers of the railroad about Sanchez’s constant cellphone use about two weeks before the disaster.

The lawsuit also claims that, some months before the crash, a Connex inspector found Sanchez’s cellphone turned on, which violated company rules against engineers using the devices while on duty.

Sanchez is among those who died in the crash.

Attorneys filed an amended lawsuit on behalf of 23 plaintiffs, including passengers who were injured or killed and their spouses.

That’s the preliminary conclusion of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB), which will now conduct a full, detailed investigation into the Nov. 12 incident at Allied Terminals in Chesapeake, VA.

The welding was performed in 2006 to strengthen four fertilizer tanks that were built around 1929.

CSB’s lead investigator said the agency found incomplete penetration of the welding metal into joints. The welding defects likely weakened the tank and led to its failure when liquid inside was raised to just three inches below its recommended safe fill height.

The investigation also determined that the three other large fertilizer tanks likely have similar welding defects. One of the tanks is just 250 feet from homes.

CSB recommends Allied conduct an independent engineering analysis for the remaining tanks.

John Bresland, CSB chairman, said, “it appears that no federal, state, or local agency has clear regulatory and enforcement responsibility for the safety of non-petroleum aboveground storage tanks.”

Part of CSB’s ongoing investigation will be to determine whether additional safeguards are necessary at national and state levels.

The tank collapse seriously injured two contract workers, who were hospitalized. Two members of the public who tried to help the injured men required treatment, likely related to exposure to ammonia vapor.

The fertilizer overtopped a containment dike and flooded sections of a nearby residential neighborhood.

His story:

No doubt in our minds: Reporting and investigating near-misses were both key elements to controlling risks before employees were injured.

However, near-miss reports at our company were few and far between.

So we started a program to increase near-miss reporting.

Educate, count, reward

We told all employees everyone was expected to report unsafe acts, conditions or situations.

One barrier: Some employees were afraid to speak up about safety problems. Often, this fear came from work at other companies where near-miss reporting was criticized or ignored.

So we held a class to show employees how to speak up when they observed unsafe behavior. This training included powerful stories from experienced people explaining that not speaking up often results in serious injury or even death to themselves or others.

After everyone learned how to speak up, we started tracking the number of near-miss reports turned in. As they say, what gets measured gets done.

The final part: We set up a rewards program. Nothing fancy; crews with the most near-miss reports got to leave work a little early, use the parking close to the gate, and eat lunch on the company.

Workers turned in 3,000 near-miss reports in a year. And our OSHA recordable rate went down to just 0.7.

(Adapted from a presentation by Doug Nugent, Safety Manager, Shaw Group, Lena, LA, at ASSE’s Safety 2008 conference)

Cortec Spray Technologies of Spooner, WI, has agreed to pay a fine of $250,000. OSHA originally proposed $424,000 in fines for multiple safety violations. The reduced fine is contingent on Cortec’s promise to bring the plant into compliance by Dec. 31.

The Spooner Fire District Chief determined that on March 18, an accumulation of propane ignited and caused the large explosion.

Workers had been trying to purge a liquid propellant line, but ran into difficulties. That allowed the gas levels to rise and drift into another area of the plant where an employee was operating an electric-powered forklift.

The forklift caught fire and the explosion followed.

Natural gas seeping from pipes caused an explosion at a San Diego hotel construction site that injured a firefighter and 13 construction workers. Three of those injured required weeks of hospital care for critical burns, according to the Union-Tribune. The hotel’s fourth through seventh floors were destroyed in the explosion.

Cal-OSHA assigned most of the blame for the blast to Sherwood Mechanical, Inc., a plumbing and heating contractor. Sherwood faces fines of $67,500 for four serious violations:

• The company’s Code of Safe Practices didn’t address methods for testing concentrations of natural gas, procedures for purging gas line or methods to control operation of gas.
• Employees weren’t instructed on methods for testing natural gas concentrations, procedures for purging gas or methods to control access to valves and pipes.
• Piping being purged of air wasn’t vented outside from an enclosed space, and the vent wasn’t closed after air was purged.
• The company allowed natural gas to accumulate in a room to dangerous levels and failed to test the concentration of gas in the room.

A report says workers trying to flush air out of pipes feeding a hotel boiler inadvertently allowed natural gas to leak into a fifth-floor mechanical room.

After the gas built up in the room, any number of electrical installations could have been the ignition source, including light switches and lighting itself.

Derri Carrier’s arm was permanently disfigured when she was just 18 years old.

She was cleaning a bacon production line inside an Iowa food processing plant. Moving parts grabbed the loose sleeve of her smock and pulled her arm in.

Carrier’s humerus bone snapped instantly. Her arm was stuck in the machinery, and she couldn’t reach the emergency stop button.

By the time someone heard her screams and stopped the machine, most of her arm’s skin and muscle had been stripped away.

Her employer, National Service Company of Iowa (NSC), conducted its own investigation and concluded the responsibility rested with Carrier. It found she should not have been wearing the loose-fitting smock.

Now, NSC strictly forbids its workers from wearing such loose-fitting clothes.

In an interview with KETV, Carrier wonders why Iowa’s OSHA didn’t investigate.

Iowa only requires workplaces report accidents that involve loss of limb.

The state’s Labor Commissioner, Dave Neil, said more investigations aren’t done because of a lack of federal funds coming to states.

Federal OSHA investigates workplace accidents when there is a fatality or three employees are hospitalized. A bill in Congress would require investigations when two workers have to go to a hospital.

Are efforts to reduce workplace injured harmed by a lack of government investigations? Let us know what you think in the Comments Box below.

For more on this story, click here.

Example: OSHA has fined Wynnewood Refining Co. in Oklahoma $91,000 for three serious and two repeat violations.

The inspection followed an explosion resulting from the release of flammable liquid and vapor from an open piping system during preparation for maintenance. The facility produces gasoline, butane, fuel oils and asphalt.

The three serious violations were for failing to document and implement provisions of the Process Safety Management (PSM) standard concerning equipment deficiencies, operator training and safe working conditions.

The two repeat violations were for failing to document design codes and written procedures for normal operations and mechanical integrity. These are also violations of the PSM standard and involved the refinery unit’s flare systems.

For more information on this fine, click here. This link will search for the most common violations in your industry.

One employee received minor injuries and the main warehouse at Barton Solvents in Des Moines was destroyed in the October 2007 fire and explosion.

The Chemical Safety Board (CSB) report makes recommendations for handling and storing flammables:

• Ensure equipment is bonded, grounded and designed for flammable service.
• Use dip pipes when top-filling portable tanks.
• Install fire suppression systems in flammable packaging areas, and
• Separate flammable packaging areas from bulk storage areas.

For more information on the Barton explosion and advice from CSB, click here.