I WILL CATCH EVERYONE UP THIS WEEKEND, BUT THIS WILL BE THE ONLY
EDITION OF THE ALERTS THIS WEEK.
Bryan
SAFTENG.net UPDATE
4/13/11
– ADDED dozens of FREE videos on Flammable Liquids, BLEVEs, Confined
Space, Emergency Response to the Safety Info Posts. Some videos
have their own section, others have been posted in the Safety Info
Posts applicable sections.
4/12/11 –
UPDATED the Members area with 52MB of photos in all categories.
Story of Interest
ThyssenKrupp Director Convicted in Worker Deaths (an Italian
court sentenced a steelmaker director-general in Italy to
16-and-a-half years in jail for the deaths of seven workers after a
fire at itsplant in December 2007 – he was convicted by a court of
"voluntary homicide," a first in Italy for a workplace accident –
seven workers died days and weeks after suffering severe burns when
a fire broke out at the steel plant{apos}s thermal treatment department –
the fire sparked a major public debate over health and safety
regulations – four other executives were convicted of complicity by
carelessness and sentenced to 13-and-a-half years in prison – a
fifth received a 10-year jail term – company was also fined €1
million ($1.4 million) – the defense had claimed the trial was
"political)
Employee Denied
Workers{apos} Compensation Due to His Conduct (an employee who
suffered serious injuries in a motor vehicle accident on his way to
work was denied workers{apos} compensation benefits after a judge found
that the accident was caused by the employee{apos}s wilful misconduct –
the employee in the case flew from his home in Florida to work as a
welder at his employer{apos}s facility in Massachusetts, an incinerator
in Haverhill. The morning after he arrived, he was unable to locate
a supervisor, so he assumed he would be working the day shift
beginning the next morning. He purchased dinner, which included
several beers and a bottle of bourbon, and went to sleep at an early
hour. At around 9:00 that evening, the employee{apos}s roommate woke him
and told him he was supposed to be at work. On his way to the
incinerator, the employee drove off the highway and crashed his
vehicle. Tests performed at the hospital indicated that the
employee{apos}s blood alcohol level was well above the legal limit for
driving of .08 percent at the time of the crash)
INDUSTRIAL
MINE
One Miner Missing Following Accident in Northern Idaho (crews
worked throughout the night in a desperate attempt to free a miner
trapped more than a mile underground at a mine – the miner was
working with his brother when a cave-in occured – his brother
escaped, but he was trapped – the mine is one of North America{apos}s
deepest hard-rock mines, reaching depths of nearly 9,000 feet)
AMMONIUM HYDROXIDE
HAZMAT Team Called For Ammonia Spill (5400 gallons of ammonium
hydroxide flow into a creek caused the evacuation of some workers –
leak came from what may have been a faulty valve as workers were
transferring the chemical from a tanker truck to the plant where it
was being repackaged in 55 gallon drums – leak went unnoticed for
some time between 4:45 am and 5:45am as workers operated the
packaging equipment inside a building – no one was injured)
GAS DRILL RIG
Gas industry worker injured in Terry Township (a gas industry
worker was flown by emergency medical helicopter to a hospital in
the region after he suffered a foot injury in an accident at a gas
drilling site – he was on a drilling rig (with his foot) stuck
between two metal plates – he was stuck approximately 20 feet above
the ground – the man was lowered to the ground using a hoist system
– the worker was in a harness at the time the accident occurred)
ELECTRICAL
WMECO Employee Rushed to the Hospital (an Electric Company
employee was rushed to the hospital after he was found unresponsive
and dangling 30 feet from a utility pole – the accident happened
around 11 a.m. – police believe the worker may have accidentally
come in contact with charged electrical equipment – firefighters had
to use a bucket truck to rescue him – he was taken to a Hospital
with critical injuries)
UPDATE on FATAL EXPLOSION UPDATE
Worker was killed by hydrogen blast (an accident that killed a
company technician last month at a power plant was caused by a
hydrogen explosion – worker, 24, was performing maintenance at the
coal-fired plant March 15 when the accident occurred that morning –
no other employees were injured – hydrogen is used as a coolant in
the generator when it{apos}s shut down for maintenance – the company{apos}s
investigation revealed that some hydrogen had been left in the
generator and was ignited by a fan or the workers work light)
FATAL FALL
Dow Chemical worker{apos}s death under investigation (a worker has
fallen to his death from an elevated location)
AUGER ACCIDENT
North Iowa man hurt in farm accident (a man, 82, is in critical
condition after a farming accident – he was loading corn when a
piece of equipment fell on him – it happened at a grain bin site –
he and another man were loading corn when a truck hit a grain auger
trapping him underneath – the other man was able to free him before
rescue crews arrived – emergency workers air-lifted him first to a
hospital, then transferred him again)
FORKLIFT
Man
injured in forklift accident (a man, 52, was reported in serious
condition following an accident involving a forklift – he was struck
and knocked to the ground by a forklift, which was moving some
bundles of cardboard – neither the forklift operator nor the worker
saw each other – he was initially transported to a Medical Center,
before he was transferred to a larger Medical Center)
AMMONIA LEAK caused by FALL from LADDER
2 injured in ammonia leak in Norfolk (two people were injured in
an ammonia leak – a Level 2 hazard – a hazmat team went into the
building and secured the leak – employees reported a worker on a
ladder fell and struck a pipe that leads to tank containing ammonia
– not immediately clear what injuries the workers sustained, but two
employees were taken to the hospital – one worker had been released
by 1:30 p.m. the other was hospitalized with non life-threatening
injuries – no evacuations were needed)
CONSTRUCTION
CRANE FATALITY
Man dies in construction accident (a construction worker, 55,
was killed when a piece of construction equipment fell on the crane
he was operating, crushing him inside – responding deputies, along
with EMS and Fire Rescue, found the worker trapped inside the crane
beneath the piece of equipment – he was pronounced dead on the
scene)
FALL
Construction worker hurt in Norton (a construction worker, 38,
was seriously injured in a work site accident – he was working on
the renovation of a commercial building and fell through the ceiling
and landed on a carpeted, concrete floor – he was taken to a
Hospital – his injuries were classified as serious but were not
considered life-threatening)
FALL from SCAFFOLDING
Construction
worker falls 10 feet (a construction worker, 48, is taken to the
hospital after falling 10 feet from a scaffolding platform – the
accident happened around 8 a.m. this morning – he received minor
injuries to his forehead and was taken to the hospital to undergo
treatment)
CRANE FATALITY
Tower crane collapse kills five in east China (five people were
killed after a tower crane collapsed at about 9 am at a construction
site – the tower crane was under maintenance – three workers were
killed on the scene and two seriously injured died later in hospital
– cause is under investigation)
MISCELLANEOUS
TIRE CHANGING FATALITY
Ocala worker dies after being crushed by loader (worker, 56, an
employee of a construction tire business was critically injured at
the work site after a 33,000 pound front end loader fell on him as
he was changing a tire – employees used a forklift to lift the front
of the loader off the victim – he was taken by ambulance to a
landing zone, then airlifted to a hospital in critical condition –
he had been working and changing tires for more than 30 years – the
machine is a wheel loader with an operating weight of 33,290 pounds)
Pawnee
Postal Worker Struck and Killed by Train (a postal worker was
struck and killed by a train while walking on the tracks – there are
two sets of tracks there – one track had a train that was just
sitting there – it appears he walked around that train and was
struck by a train traveling eastbound on the tracks)
Worker crushed by tree limb (a man was flown to a hospital after
being crushed by a heavy limb while working in a tree – he was
cutting a foot-thick limb when the branch struck him before it fell
to the ground – the man, who was in a harness and working with a
safety line, was initially stuck in the tree, temporarily trapped by
the 10-foot-long limb – a co-worker climbed into the tree and
lowered the injured man to the ground – he was working about 15 feet
off the ground – he was taken to a Hospital and flown by a medical
helicopter to Boston) |
