27 Incidents & 1 Update (11/6/11)

2011 Fatality Tracker

Industrial

UPDATE on CONFINED SPACE FATALITY Second body recovered from Fairview sewer line accident (rescue workers recovered the body of a man Friday afternoon who, with another worker, had been overcome by toxic fumes Thursday morning while working on a sewer line)

PROPANE CYLINDER EXPLODES No Injuries In Explosion (a propane tank had been thrown away went through a trash shredder causing the explosion – the explosion blew out release doors in the building – explosion did not cause a fire or injuries)

AMMONIA Ammonia Leak Contained at a Foods Processing Plant (Hazardous Materials Team was able to contain ammonia leak sparked by power outage – an ammonia leak was detected at the foods processing plant by the night security guard – the pungent odor of ammonia coming from the engine room which controls the refrigeration units at the plant – a little less than one gallon of ammonia leaked into the engine room – police blocked off surrounding roads and the Red Roof Inn was advised to turn off any heat or air conditioning and to close all windows and doors tightly – the security guard who made the initial call was admitted to the hospital for irritation from the ammonia exposure and was unharmed)

ELECTRICAL Marshall-DeKalb Electric Cooperative worker injured (an employee received serious burns to his hands in an accident – an employee working with two crews received burns to both palms and fingers on his right hand as he worked to upgrade power lines – he was transported by company vehicle to a hospital and has been transferred to a Burn Center – he is listed in stable condition)

LOADING DOCK FATALITY Company Releases Name of Employee Who Died (newly hored employee, 19, died after being seriously injured when the worker was pinned between a trailer and a truck – the truck was backing up into a flat bed trailer that was already loaded when the worker got between both vehicles – it’s unclear if the driver saw the worker or not)

RAIL YARD FATALITY Teen worker killed at Alberta CN railyard (worker, 18, is killed while working at a railyard – he had just graduated from high school and was planning to join the military – he was run over by the rear wheels of a tractor-trailer unit while working outside in a supply yard – a crane was used to lift the truck off him but he was pronounced dead at the scene)

CHEMICAL – ANILINE and START-UP INCIDENT Worker sent to hospital following chemical release (one person was transported to a local hospital for observation and 26 plant workers were evaluated on site after a chemical release at about 8:30 a.m. – the site experienced an event resulting in a release of liquid aniline – there are no reported injuries – twenty-six plant workers evaluated by the site physician and released – one individual was transported to a Hospital for observation and has been released – during a plant start-up, a release of liquid aniline occurred through a safety relief valve)

NATURAL GAS EXPLOSION Explosion at a natural gas pumping station in Pennsylvania (an overnight explosion and fire at a natural gas pumping station had firefighters scrambling – firefighters from three states, Pennsylvania, Maryland and West Virginia, battled the blaze as 150 people were evacuated and taken to shelters – the pumping station was unmanned overnight when the explosion happened and no one was hurt – an investigation into the blast is underway)

ELECTRICAL Ameren worker burned in accident (a veteran lineman, 54, is being treated for severe burns after a weekend incident in which he came into contact with a 7,200-volt line – he was listed in satisfactory condition – he was among a group working on lines  when the incident occurred at 8:52 a.m. – he was flown from the scene by a helicopter – during the course of the work, he accidentally came into contact with a 7,200-volt distribution line – the crew was working from a bucket truck, replacing a cross arm damaged by lightning)

GARBAGE TRUCK FATALITY Disposal worker dies after he was hit by car (a worker, 24, was hit by a car Oct. 13 while working has died as a result of his injuries – the man, a waste disposal worker, was crossing the road around 8:30 a.m. when he was struck by a westbound car – the accident occurred as the car was passing the stopped garbage truck)

ELECTRICAL Man Injured in Quarry Accident (a worker at a rock quarry was critically injured and transported to a Hospital before being taken to a burn center – a welder was doing repair work using a bucket truck to lift material when the bucket truck’s boom came into contact with a 4,160-volt power line – two men were involved with the accident, one man was injured, while a second man was unharmed – the man who was shocked was transported to a Hospital before being taken to a burn center for non-life-threatening injuries)

REFINERY ACCIDENT Three workers hurt in refinery accident (three contract workers were injured in an accident at a refinery while performing routine maintenance on a diesel hydrotreater – the workers were taken to local hospital for treatment)

MINE FATALITIES 50 missing after coal mine explosion (four mine workers have been killed and 50 others are trapped underground after an explosion in a coal mine – the accident happened late on Thursday – images of seven miners being carried out of the pit alive by rescue teams carrying oxygen tanks – 75 people were working the mine when the blast occurred)

AMMONIA Ammonia leak forces evacuation of business (no injuries reported in incident – a small ammonia leak at a business led to the evacuation of all employees – the leak originated from the service line of a small tank in the building – employees were told to go home for the day and there were no reported injuries)

CHLORINE Chlorine Leak Injures 3 at Dover Chemical Plant (a chemical leak caused injuries and closed a portion of Interstate 77 just after 6:30 p.m. when a chlorine line ruptured – twenty-four people were reportedly in the building at the time of the leak – the remaining 21 workers were evaluated at the scene and then released)

Construction

WALL COLLAPSE Man pulled from rubble in Vaughan construction accident (a construction worker, 39, was taken to hospital after a wall fell on him – he was trapped under rubble from the retaining wall until emergency crews pulled him out – he was sent to a Hospital with non-life-threatening injuries and a possible arm fracture in stable condition)

CRANE FATALITY Body of man killed in Thursday crane accident recovered (efforts to retrieve the body of a man, 75, who died Thursday after being trapped inside a 25-ton crane have been completed – crews stated in a release they retrieved the body by 2:40 p.m. – police received a report around 3 p.m. on Thursday a crane on a barge at a construction site had toppled over – the man reportedly had tried jumping out of the machine, but was crushed – the crane was half in the water and half on the barge, until a second crane helped right it to a standing position – the cause of the accident has yet to be determined)

MANLIFT FATALITY Minn. man killed in work accident identified (an electrical worker, 58, who was killed in a job site accident was working on a scissor lift at a post office building – he came to work at about 7 a.m. and no one was nearby when the bucket of his crane was lodged between some tubing and a rafter in the ceiling – he was pronounced dead at the scene)

TRENCH FATALITY River Falls man dies after trench collapse (a worker, 19, died when a trench collapsed on him – he was pronounced dead at the scene of the trench collapse – accident remains under investigation)

WOrkplace VIOLENCE

Fired worker shoots employee, kills himself at gas station (a gas station employee, 44, was critically injured after he was shot multiple times – officers went to the station to investigate a reported shooting and found the shooter, 25, dead in the parking lot from an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound – police learned that the injured employee fired the shooter from the business on Nov. 1 – he returned early Sunday with a handgun and opened fire, striking the employee multiple times – the shooter then exited the business and obtained a shotgun from his vehicle where he fired multiple times into the business – he then shot himself – the employee was transported to a Hospital where he was listed in critical condition)

MIscellaneouS

TWO (2) FALLS from TREES Tree worker hurt in 45-foot plunge in Eastchester; second worker falls 20 feet in Briarcliff Manor (a worker, 33, plunged 45 feet from a tree when the rope holding his harness was severed as he trimmed branches – another worker escaped serious injury when he fell 20 feet from a tree in a separate incident – the tree worker suffered head and arm injuries and possible internal injuries in the noon accident – he was in a harness secured by one rope, and he was using a second rope to lower the cut branches – the ropes somehow came together, the friction between them severed the rope holding the harness, and he tumbled from the tree – the Verizon worker fell from a tree at 2 p.m. – he was alert and not seriously injured but was taken to a Medical Center as a precaution)

FATAL FALL from WIND TOWER Teacher killed in fall was green energy advocate (a Community College instructor, 36, died after falling from a tower while teaching on the campus – he fell from a 65-foot-tall tower used to teach wind turbine technology – he was in his first semester as chairman of the school’s energy technology program – a student was with him on the tower when he fell about 12:30 p.m. but wasn’t injured – he was wearing a safety harness on the tower)

CO FATALITY Worker Dies While Using Lawn Mower for Warmth (worker fired up a lawn mower hoping the engine might double as a hearth – the improvised attempt for warmth would turn out to be fatal – worker, 21, would soon be found dead inside the truck, with his cousin critically injured – detectives believe that the culprit was carbon monoxide poisoning)

CHAINSAW FATALITY Western Pa. man dies 6 days after chain saw accident while trimming tree (a man, 47, has died of injuries sustained in a chain saw accident while cutting a tree last week – he died nearly a week after sustaining a serious leg injury – he was unconscious and bleeding when medics arrived – emergency responders used the workers’ ladders to reach him and release him from his safety harness)

FLASH FIRE on GAS WATER HEATER Small Explosion Burns One Man (a small natural gas explosion at a rewsturant sent one man to the hospital with minor burns – the explosion was small and was confined to the water heater – the pilot light went out on the hot water heater in the basement of the restaurant – a worker went to relight it – at that point, gas vapors had already built up in the room so when the worker tried to light it a fire briefly consumed the vapors – there was no real explosion, just a flash of flames that lasted only seconds)