20 incidents & 3 updates (10/23/12) – Safety Engineering (SAFTENG)

2012 Fatality Tracker

Electrical

(2011 = 81)

(2010 = 90)

(2009 = 100)

Forklift/Manlift

Mobile Equipment

(2011 = 84)

(2010 = 110)

(2009 = 88)

Mining

(2011 = 248)

(2010 = 480)

(2009 = 586)

Explosions

227

(2011 = 218)

(2010 = 246)

(2009 = 302)

Cranes

(2011 = 50)

(2010 = 50)

(2009 = 82)

Falls

(2011 = 123)

(2010 = 139)

(2009 = 172)

(2008 = 250)

Work Zone

(2011 = 54)

(2010 = 50)

(2009 = 69)
(2008 = 69)

Trenching

(2011 = 36)

(2010 = 54)

(2009 = 48)
(2008 = 90)

LOTO/Guards

(2011 = 64)

(2010 = 51)

(2009 = 68)
(2008 = 66)

Confined Space

(2011 = 62)

(2010 = 112)

(2009 = 73)
(2008 =137)

The numbers above are obtained from the news sources used to compile the Incident Alerts. They are NOT official numbers published by any government agency. They are derived SOLELY from my search engine search strings.

INDUSTRIAL

LOTO/GUARDING Industrial accident invites scrutiny (a worker was stuck in a press at about 11:30 a.m. – he was flown to a Hospital – no further information was available about him)

COAL DUST EXPLOSION @ POWER PLANT Minnesota Worker Injured in Blast at Power Plant (an 11-year employee, 41, at a power plant was injured in an explosion at the coal-burning power plant at about 9:20 a.m. – he was in the coal bunker room at the time of the explosion – it appeared to have been a coal dust explosion that caused several spot fires in the large building – it wasn’t clear what may have triggered the blast – worker’s condition was not immediately available but that he was conscious and communicative – the coal bunker facility, where coal is stored before it is burned in the steam generators, was being filled with coal when the accident occurred)

AMPUTATION @ SAWMILL Sawmill worker cuts off arm (a worker, 40, lost his above the elbow in an accident at a sawmill – he worked for the company through the temp agency and was using a hula saw in the fence plant when the accident happened about 2:25 p.m. – the hula saw is used to cut lumber into shorter pieces – he had worked at the sawmill on and off for a year)

UPDATE on FALL Food Company Fined as Worker Falls from Pipework (a food company has been fined after a man fell from pipework – he was working a night shift when the accident happened in February 2011 – the company processes grains such as oat and wheat to be used in food production – he was in the basement of the 9-storey mill when a feed pipe became blocked – he pinpointed where the blockage was but had no ladder or platform available to reach it – instead he climbed on pipework and sat on one of the pipes so that he could reach the blockage – whilst he was doing this, he lost his balance and fell three metres to the ground below – he struck more pipework during his fall, and suffered multiple injuries – he broke several ribs, as well as suffering from cuts and bruises in the accident)

MINE FATALITY Worker dies at New World’s Czech mine (a miner, 48, was killed around 900m underground – no details or word on cause)

FATAL FALL from CRANE Contract worker dies at sintering plant of SAIL BSL (a contractor, 26, died in an accident at a Steel Plant – he fell from a height while he was on inspection work of LT wheel in a Grabe Crane number 1 at the sintering plant)

ELECTRICAL Shocked and burned: Workers electrocuted (two powerline maintenance workers suffered extensive electric shocks – the men are in a stable condition – they suffered serious injuries to their feet and hands – the men, who were changing a transformer, came into contact with a high-voltage powerline – at least one of the pair has had surgery and there were fears both could have kidney damage – the damage to the hands of one of the men is understood to be especially severe – it was not yet know what had happened in the incident that left a third worker, a safety supervisor, in emotional shock)

MOLTEN METAL EXPLOSION Three workers injured as explosion rocks Mazda’s Hiroshima factory (a blast rocked car factory injuring three workers – of the three, one was hospitalized while the other two sustained only minor burns – the explosion occurred during the transportation of molten steel in a cylinder-shaped container measuring 1 meter in diameter and 1.5 meters high – the container accidentally fell over, spilling its contents and causing the blast)

UPDATE on FATAL HOTWORK EXPLOSION Charges laid in fatal explosion at Terrace Bay Pulp (a mechanical contractor, and three individuals are facing charges in connection with a fatal explosion at the pulp mill last October – a worker was killed in the explosion – they are charged for failing to ensure a tank being worked on was free of an explosive or flammable substance – the three individuals face similar charges – all are charged under the Occupational Health and Safety Act – the charges specify the tank was being worked on without “adequate instructions (being) given to a worker performing welding-related work on a cracked tank that normally contains a hazardous substance”)

MOLTEN METAL 12 workers injured in Chhattisgarh factory explosion (at least twelve workers were injured, five of them seriously, in an explosion at a rolling mill factory – molten iron fell on them following a blast – the seriously injured have been admitted to a hospital – around 36 labourers were working at the factory at the time of the mishap – the blast occurred at the furnace due to air pressure, which threw the molten iron on the workers)

HOTWORK Fire at former east end Shell refinery (twenty-five firefighters made quick work of a small fire at the former refinery around 2:35 p.m. inside an old oil tank during demolition – workers using a welding torch most probably sparked the fire on some wood scraps – there was no immediate danger to firefighters or the public because there was no oil or gas in the tanks – no injuries were reported)

HOTWORK EXPLOSION Man severely burned when oil tank explodes (a man, 21, was severely burned when an oil tank he was using a cutting torch on exploded about 1 p.m. – he and his father were using an acetylene torch to cut an oil tank which had previously been used to store gasoline – the tank exploded and ignited nearby building – the younger man was flown to a Medical Center Burn Unit with second-and-third degree burns to more than 90 percent of his body – his father was taken to a Medical Center)

FIRE Firefighters Respond After Western Refining Machine Overheats (firefighters responded shortly after 2:00 a.m. to reports of smoke pouring from the roof of one of the buildings at the refinery – the cause of the smoke was an overheated machine that reached temperatures of more than 100 degrees – the building was evacuated while firefighters inspected the damage – there were no visible flames, but the machine did have some charring around the edges – no injuries were reported)

FIRE Major fire breaks out at Indiana Co. printing plant (the fire broke out around 9 a.m. at the printing plant – almost immediately after the fire erupted, there were reports of flames through the roof of the plant – as of noon, it was unknown if there were any injures – the cause was also unknown)

AMMONIA Ammonia leak poisons (twenty-six people remained hospitalized after an ammonia gas leak at an aquaculture company poisoned 479 people – some 1,000 people were evacuated from the area after the leak around 11 pm – three of those who remained in hospital were suffering from severe poisoning – hundreds of people were treated and released from five area hospitals – a firefighter was the most severely poisoned – the investigation was ongoing)

AMMONIA Chemical spill at Samworth Brothers (an ammonia spill at a Foods plant due to a water tower failure – personnel were evacuated as a precautionary measure – the water tower failure has caused some damage to pipework carrying ammonia to external compressors which drive the refrigeration units – no injuries reported)

CHLORINE Crews respond to chlorine leak at La Grange pumping station (a small chlorine leak forced traffic to be rerouted for about two hours near a pumping station – there was no danger to anyone in the area from a small leak on a fitting of the gas chlorine system at the pumping station, which triggered an alarm shortly before 6 a.m. – the system was shut off, repaired and returned to service by 8 a.m. – leak was due to the process of replacing parts for the system)

CONSTRUCTION

WORKZONE FATALITY Turnpike worker killed in Montgomery County accident (worker, 66, was killed when a box truck hit a dump truck, which hit the man as he worked in front of the dump truck – he had been a Turnpike mechanic for 12 years and was hit by the Turnpike dump truck at 8:25 a.m. as he worked along the highway’s eastbound lanes – two men in the box truck and one man in the dump truck were seriously injured)

BACKHOE FATALITY Contractor killed in MSP airport accident was operating backhoe (a work crew was dredging a pond when the backhoe tipped over and crushed the victim – the ground was soft, so the crew laid down planks for the backhoe – he was pronounced dead at the scene)

UPDATE on WORKZONE FATALITY Man charged after highway worker hit, killed in southern Saskatchewan (charges have been laid in the death of a young woman who was struck and killed while working as a flag person in a construction zone – officials have charged the driver, 44, with criminal negligence causing death and dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death – the charges come almost two months to the day after she was hit – the 18-year-old was working on a highway crew when she was struck by an SUV)

FALL Worker survives 5.5m fall at Nishi construction site (a worker, 22, man was taken to hospital after falling 5.5 metres down an internal ventilation shaft at an apartments construction site at about noon – he was conscious after the fall and was able to call out for help – he remained in a stable condition – it was unclear how the fall happened)

MISCELLANEOUS

FATALITY NH Storage Employee Killed On The Job (an employee, 31, at a self-storage facility has been killed on the job – he was involved in an accident with a pickup truck – the initial investigation indicates that a pickup truck driven by a customer hit him and caused fatal injuries – police are continuing to investigate)

CRANE FATALITY Hana Highway Fatality, Man Pinned under Crane (a worker, 62, was operating a crane when the crane tilted to one side, crushing him beneath it – the individual was moving equipment within the company baseyard when the accident occurred at approximately 8:44 a.m. – he passed away at the scene of injuries sustained in the incident)

What’s New this week @ SAFTENG.net

Change the clocks – Change the batteries

The infamous Phoenix FD Toluene Tank PRCS Rescue Fatality

2012 Photo of the Week # 42 (Ladders)

2012 Video of the Week #42 (Hotwork on Drums/Vessels)

Inspection and Citation Guidance for Roadway and Highway Construction Work Zones

UPDATED Respirator Q&A about “program administrator”

OSHA cites retail business distribution center with multiple serious PSM violations (NH3 refrigeration)

Hotwork, the 35′ Rule, UPDATED loss data, and changes in NFPA 51B and at CAL-OSHA

Putting Seward, IL 38,000 NH3 release into some perspective

Can Stress Corrosion Cracking (SCC) occur in Ammonia Piping?

Flixborough… the beginning of the PSM movement