33 Incidents & 1 Update (5/31/12)

2012 Fatality Tracker

INDUSTRIAL

FORKLIFT FATALITY @ PAPER MILL Mich. paper mill worker dies in forklift accident (a worker, 53, at a paper mill as been killed in a forklift accident – she died after the forklift she was operating rolled on its side – she was moving paper bales in the mill’s outside storage area at the time)

GARBAGE TRUCK FATALITY KC Trash Truck Worker Killed In Accident (a trash truck worker was run over after falling from the back of the vehicle – the man apparently lost his grip and slipped to the pavement as the truck backed out of the driveway around 11 a.m. – he was hit by the truck before another crew member alerted the driver, who stopped the vehicle)

Steel coil falls on worker at Mason factory (an 8,000-pound steel coil fell on an employee’s leg at a business – worker was taken via helicopter to a Hospital – no further information about the worker’s injuries – no other details)

ELECTRICAL Progress Energy Worker Burned in Haines City Accident (a worker, 57, was transported to a Hospital after being burned – worker is a troubleman and is a first responder to distribution outages or voltage problems – he responded at 8:45 a.m. to a business when he was burned – the company is still investigating how he was burned -he is listed in stable condition – he has worked for the electric company for 33 years)

MACHINERY MAINTENANCE Worker seriously injured by heavy machinery (a worker, 52, injured in a workplace accident has been flown to a hospital for medical treatment – he is in a critical condition after being hit on the head by a piece of machinery in a workplace accident – he was carrying out maintenance on road grader machine, when part of it fell and struck him on the head about 4.30 p.m.)

UPDATE on MINE AMPUTATION SW Indiana man loses leg in coal mining accident (state mine-safety officials are investigating an accident at a  coal mine that cost a worker one of his legs – doctors amputated the 34-year-old worker’s left leg last week after he became pinned between a hauling vehicle and a coal-grinding machine)

TRAIN Metro employee stepped in front of train and was struck (a mechanic was struck by a train after he stepped in front of it – he is listed in critical condition – incident happened just before 1 p.m. when a four-car train in the car wash area struck the man – he was rescued from under the first car of the train)

STEEL MILL BURNS 8 Burnt At Tema Steel (eight workers at a steel manufacturing company sustained various degrees of injury during an industrial accident around 11:30pm when a molten metal in a mould splashed on the victims when a metal accidentally dropped in the mould – the injured workers were rushed to a Medical Centre where they are currently receiving treatment)

UNLOADING TO WRONG TANK Workers sickened by chemicals at Darigold (eleven people reported feeling sick after a mishap involving a chemical delivery at a plant – a truck was making a delivery to the plant when chemicals somehow got mixed together that created a type of chlorine gas – several people were evacuated from the plant and 11 employees were decontaminated on site, then transported to an area hospital for checkups – workers were complaining of respiratory irritation but should be fine, according to Fire & Rescue – people who live near the plant were not in any danger – hazMat technicians are concerned that if the temperature reaches 150 degrees, the product will melt the tank and leak onto the ground – firefighters are working with a contractor to pump out the liquid, ventilate the building, and monitor conditions)

EXPLOSION @ FOUNDRY Explosion damages Radford foundry; officials say 10 workers escape injury (10 workers escaped injury in an explosion and fire at an automobile parts factory – 17 firefighters responded to the incident at the foundry at about 12:15 a.m. – the fire was extinguished about two hours later – a holding furnace exploded in one of the foundry’s casting lines, sending a 4-by-8-foot piece of metal through the roof and setting the plant ablaze – the worst accident at the foundry since a March 2000 explosion that killed three people)

AMMONIA and LINE BREAK PROCEDURES Worker in hospital after ammonia leak (a worker has been taken to hospital after an ammonia leak at a dairy -ammonia seeped from a detached pipe during regular maintenance at about 6.40pm – employee suffered minor burns and inhalation and was transferred to a Hospital in a stable condition – a second worker was assessed at the scene by paramedics but did not require further treatment – up to 100 kilograms of ammonia liquid is estimated to have been in the pipe)

PAINT PLANT FIRE Homes evacuated as huge smoke cloud from paint factory blaze leads to fears poisonous fumes could spread (a worker fled in flames and another covered in burning tar leapt into a river – homes evacuated due to concerns noxious fumes could spread and fears there could be another explosion – two workmen were taken to hospital following a blaze at a paint factory – ten fire crews rushed to the blaze just before 1pm and found a number of silos of solvent alight before they later brought the fire under control – Air Ambulance Service airlifted a worker, 23, to a Hospital suffering from extensive burns to his torso – worker, 40, was taken by ambulance to a Hospital suffering burns to his face, legs and hands – five other workers escaped without injury – many pics and video of the incident at the link)

UPDATE on FATAL FIRE @ PAPER MILL Future of Verso paper mill in Minnesota unclear after fatal fire (one worker, 50, was killed and at least four others were injured in the explosion that caused a large fire at the paper mill – firefighters spent a second day trying to extinguish the fire – the fire broke out Monday with an explosion in a warehouse that held nearly 4,000 rolls of paper, each weighing hundreds of pounds – the number of people injured in the blaze was reduced to four because one person refused treatment – the four were treated and released from a Hospital – the cause of the fire remained under investigation – there were “possible indications” of an air compressor explosion)

EXPLOSION Man injured in small explosion at RV center (a worker received facial burns in an accident – he was working on a heater in a camper at the RV Center when a small explosion occurred – he was taken to a Hospital for treatment)

HOTWORK Fire at VFW post injures 10 (volunteer, 77, suffered first- and second-degree burns to his hands, neck, ears and face from a fire that started in a basement rifle range where a welder had been repairing a metal wall – he was one of 10 people injured during a fire at the Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 2801 – he had been selling bingo cards when he stepped into a first-floor vestibule to make a phone call – of the 10 people who were injured, four were still hospitalized Wednesday, and three of them had been or were expected to be released during the day – the fire spread rapidly when a welding tool ignited a spray-on foam material used for minimizing sound on the back of the metal wall – when workers repairing the gun range left they closed the door, and a backdraft was created in the concrete room – it erupted through the weakest point, which was the door – estimated at least $150,000 in damage)

REFINERY FIRE 2 Workers Injured In Rawlins Refinery Fire (two workers were injured during a brief fire at the same refinery where four workers were injured in another blaze last month – the fired that injured the two workers was limited to a pump – one worker was treated and immediately released from a hospital and that the other worker was released the following day – a fire on May 8 at the refinery injured four workers)

CHLORINE Chlorine leaks at West Mich. baby formula plant (several workers at a baby formula production plant have sought medical treatment after a chlorine leak – eight employees were treated at the plant or at local hospitals after being exposed to the gas – there have been no reports of serious health problems – the leak was in a cylinder that is part of the facility’s water treatment system, and an alarm sounded after the leak was detected – he didn’t know how much chlorine leaked – plant was evacuated and firefighters were called to the scene)

CONSTRUCTION

WORKZONE FATALITY Work Zone Accident Claims Life In Kanawha County (a state Division of Highways worker was killed when a work release inmate, backing up a DOH truck, hit him at about 12:45 p.m. on I-64/I-77 – the crew was finishing up a patching job when a worker, who had been operating an air compressor, was hit by the truck – the inmate was asked to move the truck and in doing so he struck one of our crew members from behind – the DOH worker was pronounced dead at the hospital – he had been with the agency for about a year)

FALLING CINDER BLOCK from SCAFFOLDING Worker injured at Westlake High School construction site (a mason worker, 53, at a High School construction site was injured when a cinder block fell on his back just before noon – worker was taken to a Medical Center where he recieved treatment for his injuries – he was working on a lower-level scaffold when a brick came loose from a scaffold one level above him – the brick fell approximately three feet before striking the worker in the back – he was able to climb down from the scaffold under his own power and rest before being taken to the hospital – the worker has been released and cleared to return to work tomorrow, but will most likely not return to the job site until Monday)

CRANE FATALITY Crane crushes Bangalore metro worker to death (a labourer, 24, was crushed to death under a crane boom at a construction site when it fell on him while shifting a bentonite slurry tank – according to preliminary investigation, the boom was rusted and not in a position to carry a heavy load – police filed a case against the safety engineer and the crane operator)

WORKZONE – Crash Attenuator SAVES LIVES MoDOT Worker Sustains Minor Injuries in I-70 Accident (a Department of Transportation worker sustained minor injuries following an accident on I-70 near when a semi truck stuck the rear of a MoDOT dump truck – the MoDOT vehicle was equipped with a crash attenuator, which helps absorbs the shock of an impact – the MoDOT truck was being used to protect a MoDOT crew that was working to strip the road – the driver of a semi didn’t see the crew and slammed into the attenuator)

RESCUE FROM HOLE Man has minor injuries after West LRT construction fall (a worker was stuck in a construction hole for about 30 minutes – emergency crews pulled the man out about 4:30 p.m. – rhe man, who is in his 40’s, suffered minor injuries – no other details)

WORKZONE FATALITY 2 killed, 1 critical after Yancey County construction zone wreck (a horrific crash in a road construction zone left two people dead and one critically injured – a fourth person suffered minor injuries – crash happened about 10:15 a.m. when a sedan ran through several construction barrels and a barricade and then crashed into a stationary cement truck – the car’s driver was killed when the vehicle overturned and caught fire after hitting the truck – the cement truck driver was killed after being struck as he stood beside his truck – two other men standing with the truck driver were injured – a Department of Transportation worker was airlifted to a Hospital and was in critical condition – other worker suffered minor injuries)

COLLAPSE Two workers seriously injured in Gatineau construction accident (one construction worker is in critical condition and another seriously injured after a second-storey platform collapsed at a work site – one of the workers, 25, suffered severe injuries from the fall and was rushed into surgery in critical condition – another worker, 27, suffered severe injuries to his head, but is expected to recover – an excess amount of materials were left on the platform, which they believe caused it to collapse – the construction site was at a residence)

COLLAPSE Two Injured In Jessamine County Construction Accident (two workers suffered injuries when a barn under construction collapsed – at least half a dozen workers where inside the barn when wooden supports came loose around 3:30 p.m. – the barn came crashing down and one man was trapped inside – EMS took two workers to the hospital for treatment  -they are expected to recover)

EXCAVATOR Man injured in construction accident on College Drive project (a worker was injured after being backed over by an excavator at 11:26 a.m. – worker suffered traumatic injuries on the site)

MISCELLANEOUS

ROLLING TRUCK FATALITY City employee killed in freak accident (a city public works employee was working on the side of the road when his truck began rolling by itself, while he was working in front of it – it appears he tried to avoid being struck by the moving vehicle, but he tripped on the sidewalk. – the truck then struck the worker, killing him)

CONFINED SPACE FATALITY – ONE ENTRANT and TWO WOULD-BE-RESCUERS 3 killed by fumes at car wash (fumes from a chemical tanker being cleaned at a car wash have killed three people – a car wash worker fainted after climbing into the vehicle’s tank to clean it – it says three people, including the driver, rushed to help but were also overwhelmed by the fumes – three died and a fourth was being treated at a local hospital)