26 incidents & 2 updates (6/5/11)

2011 Fatality Tracker

Industrial

MINE FATALITY Central coast mine closed after worker killed (a coal miner, 52, has been killed in a fatal underground accident – he died when he became trapped under a large block of coal that had fallen from the mine wall at about 3pm – he was brought to the surface by a mine rescue team, but died in the ambulance on the way to Wyong hospital – he was an experienced coal miner who only had three years to go before he could retire – he was also the “check inspector” at the mine where he was killed and was remembered as a “mentor” to younger and less experienced colleagues)

FATAL FALL @ MINE Worker at Fort Knox gold mine dies in fall (a worker, 39, at a gold mine has died in a fall – he was killed while performing his regular duties in the primary crusher area – he had worked at the mine for more than one year and was a mill operator)

HAND INJURY Sheet metal worker flown to Portland after accident (a worker, 40, was taken to a hospital by a Life Flight helicopter after he severely injured his hand – he was working at a Sheet Metal shop when his hand got pulled into a metal roller shortly after 11 a.m. – after assessing the seriousness of his injury, paramedics called for Life Flight – he was treated and transported to the Airport where he was airlifted to a Hospital)

FALL Bethlehem worker injured in factory accident (a worker, 53, was injured after falling at work in a factory for readymade concrete – he sustained head and chest injuries after falling eight meters into a cement container)

ELECTROCUTION Two CPDCL workers electrocuted (a contract worker, 31, who was married just two days ago died in an electrical accident – another contract worker, 24, was electrocuted in the incident – the two, who were working on a high tension line at a 11 KV feeder, were electrocuted while climbing down the pole after finishing the work)

LOTO/GUARDING FATALITY in COMPACTOR Worker killed in accident at Rochester recycling plant (a worker at a recycling plant was killed when he was crushed in a compactor at the plant – the victim was in his mid 30’s – a co-worker found the victim in the compactor, between rams that compress metal and other materials – no one saw the victim enter the compactor, and officials are investigating how or why he went in – co-workers heard the machine making noises, and someone found him – the victim was pronounced dead at the scene – firefighters worked 2 ½ hours to free the victim’s body)

MINE FATALITY with PRESSURE WASHER Worker dies at Limpopo platinum mine (an employee at the Platinum mine died – he was injured during water jet cleaning operations – he died in the hospital)

MOLTEN GLASS BURNS Molten glass burns factory worker (a factory worker, in his 20’s, is in a critical condition after he was showered with material believed to be molten glass at a worksite – the accident occurred at a glass factory – molten material spilled on to the man and his shirt caught fire, burning his chest, neck, face and airway – he was taken to a hospital in a critical condition – it was not clear how the accident occurred or the exact nature of the substance that spilled on him)

MINE FATALITIES 29 coal mine workers dead in China (at least 21 workers, who were trapped in two flooded coal mines for the past few days, have died, authorities confirmed, as rescuers ruled out chances of survival of eight other missing men)

UPDATE on FATAL REFINERY EXPLOSION now appears to be a CONFINED SPACE ACCIDENT Four maintenance workers killed in refinery blast (it was four maintenance workers killed in the refinery blast – the fatalities were confirmed by Dyfed-Powys Police which said the explosion happened in a 730 cubic metre storage tank where maintenance was being carried out – refinery confirmed that the four people who died were contractors and said another worker was receiving treatment in hospital for serious burns)

REFINERY FIRE Conoco: Fire-damaged Bayway crude unit shut (a crude distillation unit remained shut on Thursday at a 238,000 barrels-per-day refinery after a furnace fire – the crude unit “remains shut down today for assessment and repair, with the rest of the refinery operating at reduced rates” – one worker was burned and remained hospitalized)

UPDATE on HYDROGEN EXPLOSION @ Nuke Plant UPDATE TEPCO says venting failure caused hydrogen explosion at No. 1 reactor (an explosion at the No. 1 reactor of its crippled Fukushima No. 1 Nuclear Power Plant in March was possibly triggered by a failure to vent hydrogen gas out of the reactor building – on June 4 hydrogen gas which was supposed to be vented out of the building containing the No. 1 reactor to lower pressure inside the container vessel had actually leaked inside the building – the explosion took place at 3:36 p.m. on March 12 blowing apart the upper part of the building containing the No. 1 reactor – the hydrogen gas is believed to have been generated after heated zirconium, a material covering nuclear fuel rods, reacted with water – the reactor building contains pipes that are intended to release gas outside the reactor building as well as pipes meant to release gas from the containment vessel – the two types of pipes converge and are connected to an exhaust stack outside the building – it is likely that workers were unable to close a pipe valve that was designed to prevent the backflow of gas into the reactor building following the loss of power in the wake of the tsunami – it is also possible that hydrogen gas leaked in the reactor building from the joints of pipes)

AMMONIA Ammonia leak at Chatham farm leaves 4 firefighters with sore eyes (four firefighters suffered shortness of breath and sore eyes after responding to an ammonia spill – a supply line ruptured during a farming accident, causing about a tonne of anhydrous ammonia to spew into the air – no evacuation was required)

AMMONIA Pork Plant Evacuated (fire department was called in to deal with an ammonia leak – the building was evacuated about an hour later – a line was leaking and crews worked to fix the problem – by 2:30, staff were being let back in)

Construction

FATAL FALL from SCAFFOLDING COLLAPSE Man dead at Rio Tinto port (police have recovered the body of contractor after an accident at a port – the man was reported missing after scaffolding he was disassembling collapsed into the harbour – according to witnesses, they heard the scaffolding fall at the jetty and saw a hard hat floating in the water beneath – his body was found just before middnight)

FATAL EXPLOSION in TRENCH Smell of gas before explosion (workers at the scene of a fatal underground explosion say they smelled gas in the week before the incident – a worker, 48, was killed and six men left with injuries similar to those sustained by “landmine” victims while inspecting work on a water pipe – one man lost both legs and sustained serious injuries to an arm – details have emerged of sparks flying in the seconds before the explosion, as officials struggled to explain the cause  – a worker, who believes his life may have been saved because he turned up late for work, said there had been a strong smell of gas all week and he was surprised the site manager hadn’t shut off the valves – “We weren’t supposed to smoke on the site, but some people still did” – the force of the explosion was so intense two other workers were hurled from the trench they were working in on to clear ground – “We were grinding just before the blast happened. There were sparks.”)

WORKZONE Driver Crashes Into Trench, Injures 2 Workers (a driver, described as being in his 80s, reportedly blacked out and crashed his minivan into a trench injuring two workers at 8:44 a.m. – one worker was operating a jackhammer and one was operating a backhoe – the driver went into the trench – one worker, the foreman, suffered a fractured rib, and the other, a pipe layer, suffered bruises to his legs and pelvis)

ASPHALT BURNS Worker injured (a construction worker was rushed to a hospital with critical injuries after being severely burned by hot asphalt – paramedics rushed the injured man to a Hospital with serious burns to his arms, feet and other parts of his body –  no other details)

ELECTROCUTION Construction worker electrocuted at Ponda (a construction worker, 22, died after he got electrocuted at a construction site while collecting electric wires -he came in contact with a live wire and suffered an electric shock – he was immediately rushed to a hospital where doctors on duty declared him dead)

TRENCH Rescue crews pull worker from trench (the site of the extension project became the scene of a tense, hour-long rescue after a worker was injured in a 20-foot trench – a rock apparently rolled into the trench while the worker was inside – he suffered a broken arm, and a bruised leg, but is expected to be okay – he was airlifted to in stable condition, and was kept overnight as a precaution)

MIscellaneous

FATAL FALL out of back of pick-up truck Worker dies after fall at Charlotte track (a contract employee a Tire sales company has died from injuries sustained when he fell at a Motor Speedway – he fell from the back of a slow-moving pick-up truck driven by a company employee while delivering racing tires for the weekend’s events)

FLASH FIRE Phoenix Workers Burned In Maintenance Yard Fire (two workers suffered burns when a city truck carburetor caught fire at a city maintenance yard – a 50-year-old man and a co-worker were working on the truck when fuel in the carburetor ignited, causing a hot and quick flash fire – the 50 year-old’s clothes caught fire, but the co-worker quickly extinguished the flames – both men were transported to the burn center, but were expected to be OK)

CHEMICAL REACTION with cleaning supplies Chemical Fumes Sicken School Workers at Local Elementary School (chemical fumes sickened some workers at an elementary school and forced officials to close the cafeteria for the day – some kitchen staff workers who were cleaning mixed some chemicals that gave off toxic fumes that made them sick and forced officials to close the school’s cafeteria for the day – none of the students at the school were exposed to the fumes – the workers and some janitors were taken by ambulance to a local hospital as a precaution, but were later released)

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