33 incidents & 2 updates (8/16/12)

2012 Fatality Tracker

I corrected the forklift count as I mistakenly reported one fatal accident twice.

INDUSTRIAL

OIL DRILLING EXPLOSION FATALITY Investigation into deadly accident at Encana gas well in Colorado could take weeks (an accident at a gas well  killed one worker, 60, and injured three others – the “high-pressure gas release” took place as the four men were bringing the well onto production – there was no fire, it was a high pressure situation – the man who died and two of those injured were contractors – the third man who was hurt is a lease operator – the three men suffered only minor injuries, and have all been released from hospital)

Accident at Bacardi warehouse kills one worker (a worker is dead after an industrial accident at a warehouse – the facility is a research, developing and bottling plant – no other details)

STEEL MILL Man hurt in steelworks accident (a worker remains critically ill following an accident at a steelworks – the metal worker, believed to have become trapped, was airlifted to a Hospital where his condition is described as critical – no details)

FORKLIFT Worker injured in fork lift accident in Lino Lakes (a fork lift accident seriously injured a worker – the forklift fell off a loading dock onto a male employee in his 30s – the victim was pinned under the machine and firefighters had to use hydraulics to free him – he suffered severe arm and leg injuries but was conscious as he was taken by ambulance)

FORKLIFT Man injured in forklift accident (a worker, 59, was injured by a forklift in a workplace accident just after 10 a.m. – the worker was pinned by the front of a forklift between a fence and a transport trailer for about 30 seconds before being freed by a co-worker – he was conscious throughout the incident – paramedics treated him for a crushing injury to his chest, and the man is in serious but stable condition at a Regional Trauma Unit)

CHEMICAL 117 FedEx Workers Treated After Chemical Accident (117 FedEx employees at the Super Hub at the airport were treated for side effects after the release of a substance used to make pepper spray – a forklift driver accidentally punctured a five-gallon barrel around 2:30 a.m.- the container was a concentrated form of chili pepper – workers complained of respiratory problems, itchy skin and burning eyes)

ELECTRICAL with BUCKET TRUCK Worker Injured in CA Electrical Fire (a fiber optics worker, 47, was badly burned by a power line – a Good Samaritan put out the fire and lowered the worker from danger – worker burned his left arm, left leg, left ear, back and chest in the blast – OSHA investigation is expected to determine how he contacted the wire and if it could have been prevented – he was installing fiber optics as a contractor about 4 p.m. – he was in a bucket lift extended from a utility truck when he came in contact with an electrical line – he bucket lift and the truck caught fire – another worker was in a separate truck’s bucket lift about 50 yards downhill and arrived and used the truck’s controls to lower the injured worker to the ground – he had been on fire for at least four minutes and was “thrashing around violently” – the Good Samaritan used what was left in the fire extinguisher to douse the worker)

EXPLOSION 3 injured in rural Tonica plant explosion, fire (two employees at a silicon carbide manufacturing plant were seriously burned and another worker suffered smoke inhalation after an explosion and fire inside a building – the two burn victims, 44 and 35, were first rushed from the fire scene to a Community Hospital and then later transported to a burn unit, where they reportedly are in stable condition – another worker, 48, was transported to a Hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation – the cause of the explosion is under investigation and the State Fire Marshal’s Office had been contacted for assistance)

FLASH FIRE Three workers hurt in fire at BP Whiting (three contract workers were injured in a flash fire – the flash fire broke out around 9:45 p.m. in a unit that was down since it was undergoing planned maintenance – two of the contractors suffered burns from the fire, and they are in stable condition at local hospitals – the third worker was treated for smoke inhalation, and the individual was discharged the same day)

MINE BLASTING Quarry worker injured on job (a worker was taken to a Regional Health Centre with non-life threatening injuries after a workplace injury at about 3 p.m. – a rock quarry was undergoing some blasting when an employee of the quarry was struck with a boulder in the abdomen from the debris of the blast)

CRANE INVESTIGATION UNDERWAY INTO CRANE ACCIDENT (an employee at the Gas Plant received minor injuries during the incident – the employee was allegedly driving the crane around with its boom extended – the crane then struck an overhead beam and the load crashed down on the windscreen, shattering it)

EXPLOSION @ RECYCLING PLANT Firefighters respond to explosion at recycling plant (firefighters responded to a hazardous materials explosion at a recycling plant – a half-filled, 7,000 gallon drum of mineral oil at the recycling plant exploded at about noon after pressure built up inside – it’s unclear what caused the pressure to increase at the plant – the explosion shook the ground two blocks away)

UPDATE on FATAL EXPLOSION @ Paper Mill Fire marshal report cites cause of Verso explosion (the Memorial Day explosion and fire at a paper mill that killed one employee was caused by an overheated air compressor that ignited oil vapors in the compressor and an air receiving tank – the 27-page report said that the cooling water supply to the compressor was severely reduced in the hour before the explosion and that two other compressors had already shut off because of overheating – the report indicated that a maintenance issue or a mechanical failure possibly caused the one compressor to exceed its thermal protection shutdown controls – state fire marshal lead investigator estimated the damage from the explosion and resulting fire at $50 million – Aug. 2 the company announced that the plant would not reopen – the report indicates that the plant had been shut down earlier in the day to repair a leaking water pipe and that the plant was just being brought back online when the explosion happened – the shutdown caused the plant to switch its source of cooling water for its air compressors and the report indicated that cooling water flow to the air compressors had dropped from about 215 gallons per minute at 7:54 a.m. that day to a fluctuating rate of between 19 and 3 gallons per minute between 10:05 a.m. and 10:14 a.m. until the time of the incident at 11:17 a.m.)

HOTWORK GRASS FIRE Crews quickly handle fire near Clinton (firefighters state that a welding crew sparked a small grass fire near I-90 at around 7 p.m. – the fire burned about 3.5 acres and train traffic was halted in the area)

HOTWORK Welder sparks start fire at Sioux City business (sparks from a welder get the blame for starting a fire at a business around 9:00 a.m. – employees were evacuated, however, no one was injured – fire fighters extinguished the flames and determined sparks from a welder got inside duct work, and ignited some lint – “There was a guy welding beside the duct work. Sparks from the welder flipped-off, blew into the duct work, which ignited some lint that was in the duct work… Which spread through the duct work, and into the wall” – other than smoke, there was no major damage to the building)

UPDATE on REFINERY FIRE Calif. refinery fire probe looks at spark sources (investigators probing the cause of a blaze at the refinery are looking at heaters and responding emergency vehicles as possible ignition sources for the massive vapor cloud that spewed from a leaky pipe – fired heaters could have provided a spark for the Aug. 6 fire – a responding refinery fire truck could be another possible spark source, since the 150-to-200-foot-high vapor cloud covered a large area and engulfed more than a dozen workers who narrowly escaped serious injury – diesel-powered trucks and generators have been ignition sources at other large refinery fires, including at BP’s Texas refinery explosion that killed 15 workers and injured dozens more – the refinery blaze knocked an important refinery unit offline, reducing the facility’s production and sending thousands of people to hospitals with breathing and eye irritation complaints – internal surveillance video showed the vapor cloud engulfing the area for two minutes – the vapor cloud was estimated to be about as tall as the refinery tower)

HOTWORK EXPLOSION Explosion rocks Calgary asphalt plant (an explosion that blew the lid off of a containment vessel in the yard of an asphalt plant – workers were heating a plugged valve on an asphalt emulsion tank – as the valve unplugged, gas in the tank caught fire and flashed, causing an explosion – the top of the storage tank blew off and landed one and a half blocks away, knocking down electrical lines at about 11:30 a.m. – the container explosion scattered debris over a large area and damaged nearby businesses – there was no fire and no one was injured)

GUARDING/LOTO Industrial Accident At Egg Plant (the incident was reported at approximately 7:45 p.m. – the victim reportedly caught her arm in a piece of machinery and sustained a large laceration and lost consciousness – she was transported by ambulance to the hospital)

AMMONIA Anglesey ammonia spill leaves four hurt (an ammonia leak at an industrial estate left four people injured as emergency services launched a major operation to contain a cloud of ammonia gas – emergency services advised local residents to stay indoors and keep all windows and doors closed – the gas, which is used in the factory’s cooling systems, may have partially been converted to a liquid as the firefighters used water to control the cloud – all 20 personnel within the premises were evacuated safely, however, two adults and two children received treatment from paramedics at the scene)

AMMONIA Officials: Ammonia Leak Secured (an ammonia leak at an Ice House has been isolated and is secure – crews have been on scene since shortly before 6:00 trying to control the leak inside the building – no other details)

AMMONIA Ammonia leak at east end food distributor (three employees required treatment after emergency crews responded to an ammonia leak at a food distributor – an ammonia leak from a compressor – the employees were treated on site and were ready to return to work by 1:00 a.m.)

CONSTRUCTION

TRENCH FATALITY Worker dies in trench collapse at Texas refinery (a construction worker, 65, has died in a trench collapse at a refinery – the accident happened at a construction site at the refinery – the victim was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead)

WORKZONE FATALITY A road construction worker is dead and the driver is critically injured (worker, 56, was working when he was hit by a pickup truck just before midnight – he was working in the center lane of the Parkway – it was completely coned off on both sides, but a car coming from behind him drifted into the lane where he was working)

WORKZONE FATALITY Utility Worker Struck, Killed In Delaware County (a utility worker, 34, was killed in an accident at about 3 p.m. – a pickup truck slammed into a Water Authority vehicle; that vehicle then struck and killed the subcontractor who was doing some work for the Water Authority – the victim was working in a three-foot hole on the street – half of his body was above the hole when the driver of the pickup truck started a train reaction accident – the victim was pronounced dead at the scene – two other unidentified men were taken to a Medical Center for treatment)

WORKZONE FATALITY Road Construction Worker Struck and Killed (a construction zone accident left one worker, 56, dead and another in critical condition – he was was struck by a pick up truck that drifted into the construction area – after he was struck he was propelled into a nearby road construction steel roller machine – he died at the scene – the driver of the car, 35, was critically injured when he crashed his pick up truck into the steel roller after hitting the worker)

MACHINERY HAND Man injured in industrial accident (a construction worker was injured and taken to hospital – he sustained injuries when his right hand apparently became caught in a piece of machinery – he was assessed by firefighters and stabilized before paramedics took him to a hospital – the injured worker was conscious and able to walk to the ambulance)

STEAM ROLLER FATALITY Worker dies after being run over by steamroller (a worker, 56, has been killed in an horrific accident after he fell from the steamroller he was driving and was run over – he is thought to have slipped and fallen out of the front of the steamroller – he died at the scene)

ELECTROCUTION Construction Worker Electrocuted in Ellicott City (a worker, 29, was pronounced dead at the scene at 3:30 p.m when the metal scaffolding he was carrying touched a live wire and electrocuted him – Fire and Rescue Services responded, personnel provided CPR, but he died at the scene)

FALL from TRUSS COLLAPSE 2 construction workers injured when roof collapses at church under construction in Leesburg (the roof of a church under construction collapsed, injuring two construction workers – the workers were on the roof of the building at about 12:30 p.m. when the trusses collapsed – the men fell 30 to 40 feet to the ground – both workers suffered non-life-threatening injuries)

FATAL SCAFFOLDING COLLAPSE Safety probe after man killed in Sittingbourne scaffolding collapse (a man, in his 50s, died when scaffolding collapsed – the victim is believed to have been painting the side of a house when the structure gave way – the man suffered serious head injuries in the accident just after 11am and was pronounced dead at the scene)

MISCELLANEOUS

AWNING COLLAPSE FATALITY Arkansas man killed awning collapse identified (a worker, 64, was killed when an awning collapsed at a business – workers were trying to remove a section of the awning from the building when it collapsed and struck the worker – he was transported to a Medical Center where he was pronounced dead)

WINDOW WASHERS Workers stranded 70ft up in the air in Aberdeen drama (the three men were trapped while installing windows at the new university library – accident left them stranded 70ft in the air – a mechanical problem caused the basket to jam)

CRANE Crane overturns during tree cutting, lands on roof of Newark home (a crane being used by a Tree Service to help remove a massive tree fell onto the homeowner’s house – around 4 p.m. a large green extension crane used to lower the limbs tipped over and landed on the house – the top of the crane ended up inside the house, and the truck that held it lifted up on one side – workers cut off a section of the tree about 10 feet long and several feet thick, the wood started swaying lose)