22 incidents & 1 update (1/24/13)

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since 2006	since 2011	since 2007	since 2012

2013 Fatality Tracker

Electrical

(2012 = 68)

(2011 = 81)

(2010 = 90)

(2009 = 100)

Forklift/Manlift

(2012 = 52)

(2011 = 84)

(2010 = 110)

(2009 = 88)

Mining*

(2012 = 92*)

(2011 = 248)

(2010 = 480)

(2009 = 586)

*no longer includes China accidents

Explosions

(2012 = 241)

(2011 = 218)

(2010 = 246)

(2009 = 302)

Cranes

(2012 = 52)

(2011 = 50)

(2010 = 50)

(2009 = 82)

Falls

(2012 = 99)

(2011 = 123)

(2010 = 139)

(2009 = 172)

(2008 = 250)

Work Zone

(2012 = 62)

(2011 = 54)

(2010 = 50)

(2009 = 69)
(2008 = 69)

Trenching

(2012 = 44)

(2011 = 36)

(2010 = 54)

(2009 = 48)
(2008 = 90)

LOTO/Guards

(2012 = 44)

(2011 = 64)

(2010 = 51)

(2009 = 68)
(2008 = 66)

Confined Space

(2012 = 54)

(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

FORKLIFT FATALITY Man killed in forklift crash (a worker, 21, was crushed by a forklift at about 11:19 a.m. – three or four marina employees were repairing a large forklift – in the process of fixing the machine, a portion of the lift fell and crushed the worker – the forklift in question was inoperable and the forks were raised to the highest level by another forklift and somehow the lift on the one the victim was on fell and trapped and crushed the victim)

CONFINED SPACE FATALITY – Atmospheric Worker killed, another injured at SC plant (a worker, 39, was killed and another has been injured in an accident at a paper plant around 1:30 a.m. – the deceased and the other worker climbed into an old tank outside the main production area to do some maintenance work – county emergency management director said it’s possible that some type of chemical leaked into the tank – the other worker was removed from the tank and is being treated for injuries – his name and condition have not been released – no mill evacuation was necessary)

GUARDING FATALITY – SAFETY DEVICE FAILURE/BYPASS Coroner: Worker killed when machine’s safety feature fails (a worker, 62, was killed at a manufacturing plant when fell into a metal stamping machine that two coworkers were operating – he fell into the machine and it caused a traumatic head injury and he died of injuries suffered in the accident, not any other medical event – the plant manager stated that the machine has a safety feature that should shut it down in something goes wrong, but it appears that the safety feature was not working at the time of the accident – “There was a coworker also helping operate the machine, and right now we’re trying to determine why the safety features on the machine did not cause the machine to shut down with him being so close to it”)

GUARDING Steel plant worker injured after arm crushed in press (a worker severely injured his arm in an accident at a steel plant – his arm became caught in a machine press and was a very near amputation – when crews arrived the man had been freed from the press, and his clothing was still tangled in the machinery)

ARC FLASH Electrical shock leaves two workers in critical condition (a workplace accident sent two men to a local hospital after being injured by an electrical shock just before 10 a.m. – an arc occurred in a panel where four employees were working – the arc flash caused burns to two of the workers – they both had a possible inhalation burns to the face due to the flash, the face and hands – both men were taken to a Hospital for treatment of their injuries)

UPDATE on HOTWORK TANK FLASH FIRE Investigation at Elkhart’s Yoder Oil continues (a worker who was injured in an accident on Nov. 16, 2012, is still recovering from his injuries – he initially received 40 percent burns on mostly his stomach and back- he was sedated for 30 days – chief investigator for the fire department, said the company was replacing some tanks that are used to store large quantities of fuel – the worker was cutting one last tank to remove its pieces using a torch – however, he was working close to a tank that was empty but not scrubbed – the fumes from the tank got to the area where the worker was using a torch, causing an ignition – the tank, somewhere between 10,000 and 15,000 gallons in volume, buckled following the explosion)

MANLIFT & FORKLIFT (2 separate accidents) Two workers badly hurt in separate Abbotsford industrial accidents (two men have been seriously injured within a 24-hour period after two separate industrial accidents – #1) firefighters had to use the Jaws of Life to safely remove an unconscious man from the operator’s bucket of a scissor lift – the construction worker had been operating the lift and was crushed between the lift and an overhead canopy – his head contacted a sprinkler head above him – the worker was in serious condition – he was air lifted to the trauma center – #2) a production worker suffered serious leg and possible pelvic injuries after being crushed between two pieces of machinery at a masonry and stone block company – a forklift running on a track at the site pinned the man against another machine)

CARBON MONOXIDE Toxic fumes leak in Visakhapatnam Steel Plant, 11 hospitalized (after the alleged lack of safety measures resulted in leakage of toxic carbon monoxide gas from a new boiler at the steel maker’s captive thermal power plant, around 11 employees were hospitalized after they inhaled toxic fumes during the launch of boiler-5 at the thermal power plant – there was no loss of life and all those admitted were discharged within 24 hours)

CARBON MONOXIDE Second N.B. workplace reports apparent carbon monoxide fumes (37 employees at a plant were treated in hospital for exposure to carbon monoxide – 11 people working inside a potato shed were probably exposed to the colourless, odourless gas – more than three dozen employees were hospitalized following a carbon monoxide leak – all of them were later released from hospital)

MANLIFT Worker struck by steel rail at IMTT facility in Bayonne (a worker was taken to the hospital after he was struck by a steel I-beam around 1:13 p.m. and found the worker trapped under a steel train rail – the worker was operating a boom truck, using a claw-like device to maneuver the rail when he was struck – workers used a forklift and chain to secure the steel, while firefighters maneuvered an aerial platform truck to get the victim)

CHEMICAL Three people sent to hospitals after accident chemical release at Taminco plant (a cloud of dimethylamine (DMA60) was accidentally released during a loading process at a Plant – two employees and a truck driver went to area hospitals following the accident – no one was seriously injured – an alarm sounded in the communities around the plant, alerting the public of the release, around 7:10 a.m. – a second “all-clear” alert was sounded at 7:45)

FIRE No injuries in Pringles plant fire in Jackson (a fire broke out on the roof in filter houses, which hold the oil used to cook the potato crisps in, caught fire – the in-house fire brigade had a lead on the blaze when the Fire Department arrived, but it wasn’t controlled at that point – the cause of the fire is still under investigation – the only damage reported was in the filter houses and vent pipes – no reported injuries)

CONSTRUCTION

FATAL FALL Queens construction worker is dead in horrifying accident (a construction worker, 42, died after he fell through the floor at his work site – he struck his head on a steel girder – he was braving bone-chilling 12-degree temperatures around 4 p.m. when he fell through the hole in the first floor, plummeting 15-feet to the basement below – he was rushed to a Hospital, where he died of his injuries)

TUNNEL Construction worker seriously injured in tunnel (a construction worker in a Tunnel project was seriously injured today when a steel structural support beam fell on him – he was taken to a Medical Center at about 2:45 p.m. with crushing injuries to his head and side of his body – the accident happened 25 to 30 feet below the surface)

MANLIFT 3 St. Louis workers hurt when boom truck falls (three city workers are nursing what appear to be minor injuries after a boom truck fell onto a dump truck – the three workers were taken to a hospital as a precaution – the cause of the accident remains under investigation)

FATAL FALL from ROOF Construction worker dies after fall (a worker, 47, died after falling three stories from a home – he was working when he fell and landed on his head – he was taken to a Medical Center where he was pronounced dead)

ELECTRICAL Worker electrocuted on CMU campus (a worker, 59, was electrocuted while he worked on the campus – he was working in the electrical distribution room on the second floor when the “industrial accident” occurred about 10:20 a.m.)

FALL into ELEVATOR SHAFT Construction worker falls 12 feet down elevator shaft at police academy site (a construction worker building a new police academy suffered serious injuries when he fell 12 feet down an elevator shaft at 2:26 p.m. – Emergency Services Unit managed to get the injured construction worker into a rescue basket and pull him out of the shaft within a few minutes – he was taken to a Hospital for treatment – it was unclear just how the man fell into the shaft)

SANITATION Sanitation worker hurt after falling off trash truck (a sanitation worker was seriously injured when a garbage truck ran over his leg around 5:50 a.m. – the man who was hurt had been hanging on the back of the truck, fell and was run over)

TRENCHING Man critical following trench accident on Meridian Road in Grosse Ile (a construction accident has led to a 56-year-old man being trapped in a trench shortly before 11 a.m. Thursday – the man was part of a team working on a broken water main – two volunteer firefighters worked frantically to try to rescue the man from the trench – digging the heavy soil with their hands – the victim, an employee of the city Department of Public Works, was transported by a Survival Flight helicopter to a Hospital where he is listed in critical condition – the men dug a 20-foot long, 12-foot deep trench – three of the workers jumped into the muddy trench to start repairs, and then the walls caved in on them – two men were able to free themselves, but the third man was buried over his head)

MISCELLANEOUS

FATAL FALL into VENTILATION SHAFT Costa Cruise Ship Worker Dies After Falling into Ventilation Shaft (a crew member, 47, died after falling into a shaft on the cruise ship – he fell into the ventilation shaft when he was repairing the fans on the ventilation system – co-workers reported him missing and he was later found dead inside the ventilation shaft)