Safety and OSHA News

Cost of Safety

OSHA issues second million-dollar fine in a month

by June 1, 2010 Comments (0)

A South Dakota company now faces $1.61 million in citations.

OSHA has filed 23 willful violations against the South Dakota Wheat Growers Association of Aberdeen, SD, for a fatality at its McLaughlin grain handling facility.

Steve Lee died Dec. 22, 2009, when he climbed inside a bin to see why the flow of grain had slowed. Lee was engulfed and smothered.

Co-workers tried to rescue him. OSHA says its investigation determined that five workers were also at risk of being engulfed when they were sent to rescue Lee. That added to the amount of the fines against the company.

An OSHA official says Lee was directed to enter the bin while it was being emptied — a common practice for the company, according to the agency’s investigation.

Earlier last year, another SD Wheat Growers employee died in a forklift incident at a different company facility.

The company is reviewing the citations. It has 15 days to decide whether to contest them.

The citations against the company include violations of confined space and grain handling standards.

Earlier this month, OSHA fined a Mississippi shipbuilder $1.32 million. That case also involved confined space violations. Two workers died in that incident.

What do you think about OSHA’s larger penalties in the last 18 months? Let us know in the Comments Box below.

Categories: Cost of Safety, In this week's e-newsletter, Injuries & Fatalities, OSHA News
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  • Gene Sibley

    Well as everyone knows, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure!!!! So! I was raised on a farm and have had to go into grain bins, silos and the such. I always used a safety rope, and yes sometimes it was a hassle but! MOM said so!! I learned early on that it was better to be safe than hurt or DEAD.
    Where I have been working for 22yrs we have had only minor cuts, scratches and a few pulled muscles from improper lifting. We have 22 machining centers and 20 welding cells with 108 people working 3 shifts. We will put safety first! It is better than having someone get hurt or killed! Yes! we have had to pay some minor fines in the past, always it was some little nit picky thing, but safety is safety! And we learn something every time!!

  • Cornell

    I agree with the fines imposed upon the companies based upon WILLFUL violations. It’s good to see the agency is flexing it’s muscle and getting the attention of WILLFUL violators.

  • Dave B

    Its about time. Years of petty fines and extremely remote chances of inspection have done nothing to promote safety in most companies. OSHA is taking a step forward by finally imposing some significant fines. Now if they can provide a reasonable chance of inspection, employers might actually start taking the health and safety of their employees seriously.

  • Joe2

    DITTO…!

  • Carol

    I LOVE IT and it’s about time. The fine should fit the crime. There is no $ amount that can be put on a life and this could have so easly been prevented. If it’s WILLFUL so be the fine.

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