42 incidents & 0 updates (7/8/12)

2012 Fatality Tracker

INDUSTRIAL

FATAL HOTWORK EXPLOSION Shipyard blast leaves 1 worker dead, 2 hurt (a welder, 24, was killed while two others were injured after a portion of a cargo vessel exploded at the shipyard – an explanation offered for the accident was that welding equipment caused a spark that ignited the residual gas fumes collected inside the ship’s newly painted six-storey accommodation area – worker powered up the equipment to seal several manholes at 3:14 p.m. – an explosion tossed him overhead the ship, where he crashed to the ground and died on the spot – co-workers, 20 and 30, sustained minor injuries – they were hoisted into the air but they got caught on the railings)

MINE Investigation underway after worker hurt in Sask. gold mine accident (an accident at a gold mine left a worker in hospital – the worker was seriously injured and was airlifted to a hospital, but no other details have been released)

FATALITY Probe launched after worker dies (a worker, 25, died in an accident at a workshop – it is understood the worker died after he was struck by a piece of machinery at the workshop)

FATAL EXPLOSION Pemex Worker Dies in Accident in Eastern Mexico (a worker was killed and two others were injured in an accident at a pumping station – the accident occurred while the workers were doing maintenance on the pumping station – an explosion and fire occurred at the pumping station – there was a spill of hydrocarbons due to the incident, but it was controlled and recovery of the (spilled) product was undertaken)

ARC FLASH Maintenance Worker Injured in Kansas Plant Electrical Blast (a maintenance worker has been critically injured in an electrical explosion – the accident occurred at the auto plant while a contract employee was working on an electrical substation breaker box – the man was hospitalized with burns on his torso – the injured man sustained significant burns – the blast caused only minor damage to the building)

MINE FATALITIES Five miners killed in fire at Driefontein mine (five miners have died at a mine after a fire broke out – fourteen other workers were admitted to hospital for routine observation and were in a stable condition)

LOADING DOCK FATALITY Driver dies after accident at postal facility (a truck driver, 46, died one day after he was reportedly run over by his own rig at a distribution center – he reportedly jumped onto his truck to stop it after it slipped out of gear and started to roll through the parking lot at the Distribution Center – he then lost his balance and the truck ran over his arm – he died from his injuries shortly before 9 p.m.)

LOTO AMPUTATION Mill worker’s hand mangled in accident (a timber mill contractor has lost parts of three fingers after an accident – accident had taken place in an area where a timber moulding machine was being set up, he said – he was contracted to work in the vicinity of the machine but was not involved with the setting up of the machine)

ELECTRICAL and LADDER Two workers burned in Jefferson mishap (two men, both in their 30s, suffered electrical burns during a work-related accident at a power substation in a manufacturing plant – one of the men received multiple third-degree burns to his upper body and was airlifted by helicopter to a Hospital – burns on to the second victim were limited to his arms – he was transported to a Regional Medical Center, where he was in stable condition – the more seriously burned man was on a ladder that tilted, and he fell over into the transformer box)

ELECTRICAL Con Ed Manager Burned While Working Underground In Manhattan (employee was injured while working in a manhole or service box – he was burned on the face as he worked at the underground location around 1 p.m. – witnesses reported hearing a loud explosion before seeing the victim being helped out of the ground by fellow workers – victim suffered facial burns and is still in the hospital – the man hurt Wednesday is the second manager injured on a job since the lockout started – another manager was burned in a substation fire on Monday)

BURNS from MOLTEN METAL Worker burned by molten metal (a worker, 39, was splashed in the face and burned with molten metal – apparently, it looks like for whatever reason, he removed the cover from a piece of apparatus – he suffered second-degree burns to the forehead, cheek and nose)

ELECTRICAL Explosion at Vladivostok Substation Prompts Inquiry (an explosion at  an electrical substation resulted in one worker receiving life-threatening injuries – the explosion took place at around 11 a.m. while modernization work was being done on equipment – one worker sustained severe burns from the blast and the resulting fire and was hospitalized in critical condition – the fire was put out by around 11:30 a.m. – a short circuit was the likely cause of the explosion)

REFINERY EXPLOSION Explosion rocks Bangkok oil refinery, starts fire (an explosion at an oil refinery caused no immediate reports of casualties – wasn’t known yet how many workers were there at the time – the fire is under control but several thousand liters of oil are burning and it may take hours to extinguish the fire – a leaking oil pipe may have caused the blast and workers have shut off oil valves)

OLEUM Acid spill at Radford Arsenal injures worker, halts production (the worker has been released from the hospital, and cleanup could take three weeks – officials are trying to determine the cause of the incident – company was in the first day of a newly awarded 10-year contract to operate the facility when an acid tank overheated and began leaking – fumes and an ill-timed severe thunderstorm delayed efforts to stop it – officials first knew they had a problem when alarms sounded to indicate the overheating of spent nitric acid tanks about 7:30 p.m. – firefighters cooled several tanks with water, but one tank containing the acid oleum continued to overheat and, about 11:30 p.m., it sprung two leaks – the oleum’s fumes forced the base’s on-site firefighting crew to retreat)

HOTWORK WELDER’S SPARK STARTS BLAZE (the fire began in two hay sheds and spread to an adjacent workshop at the agricultural freight company – sparks from a welder’s blowtorch are believed to have started the blaze – several employees had been welding near the shed – “A little spark started up and had a little bit of a fire there yesterday and we managed to get it out” – “But then nobody bothered to check it and when I came out to get in the ute to go to town I noticed the fire was started up again in the straw where they were working yesterday” – estimates put the damage at about $30,000)

AMPUTATION in CONVEYOR Man loses arm in accident at concrete plant for loop (a man lost his arm after an accident at a concrete batch plant which is being installed for the loop construction project – emergency responders were dispatched at approximately 11 a.m. to the plant to a report than a man’s arm had been mangled in a conveyor belt – it took over two hour to extract the victim and then stabilize his medical condition for transport because of the extent of his injuries – the man lost his right shoulder as well as his right arm)

EXPLOSION One Minor Injury in Explosion at Duro Bag in Richwood (an explosion caused one person to reportedly received minor injuries around 1 p.m. at the plant – it happened near an air compressor – one man working in that area received a bump on his head – no one was taken by ambulance from the scene – officials are still looking for the cause of the explosion)

EXPLOSION @ WWTP Contractor hurt in a plant explosion recovering (a man, 50, injured in a water treatment plant explosion is in a comfortable condition – he was injured in the explosion in the switchboard room at the plant – he was in a stable condition on arrival and is recovering well)

FATAL GAS CYLINDER EXPLOSION Nanjing Steel Plant Explosion Kills 2 (two workers died and three others were injured in an explosion at a steel plant – a 15-kg gas bottle exploded while being unloaded from a truck carrying oxygen and propane at 8:20 a.m.)

EXPLOSION At least two injured in explosion at Sanford oil plant (at least two people suffered injuries following an explosion at an oil plant – officials have not yet disclosed the cause of the explosion or the severity of the injuries)

EXPLOSION Significant explosion’ at Wellington meatworks (a section of a meat processing plant has been closed following a significant explosion – the explosion occurred in a large dryer – no one has been injured and everyone has been accounted for)

PROPANE TANK EXPLOSIONS @ ASPHALT PLANT Seven Explosions Rock Minneapolis Asphalt Plant (a series of seven explosions at an asphalt plant caused a three-alarm fire that took about 40 firefighters an hour to control and injured one – the explosions were caused by seven 20-pound propane cylinders – there were workers on site at the time of the explosion, but no injuries were immediately reported  cause is under investigation, including when the plant was last inspected)

AMMONIA Pump Failure Causes Ammonia Leak At Ice Rink (a pump failure at a skating rink led to the accidental release of ammonia – the failure of one of two pumps raised pressure in refrigerant lines, causing a relief valve to vent outside – there were no injuries)

AMMONIA Knoxfield factory evacuated after ammonia leak (five people have been treated by paramedics after an ammonia leak at a food business – thirty people were evacuated to a neighboring property following reports of a strong gas smell – 18 people were checked and five people were treated for the effects of ammonia, including itchy eyes – no one was taken to hospital – it was believed an electrical short had damaged a freezer valve, which caused the leak – the valve had been replaced and all staff had gone back to work)

CHLORINE Chlorine leak sickens 56 people (fifty-six people including six children have been hospitalized with chlorine poisoning after a storage tank leaked overnight – at around midnight there was a leak from a chlorine container – 56 people were poisoned and taken to hospital – the cause of the leak is not yet known and is under investigation)

CONSTRUCTION

CRANE FATALITY One dead, 1 injured in crane collapse near Oshkosh (a crane collapsed while trying to lift a beam on a bridge, killing one worker and seriously injuring another at about 9 a.m. – one worker died at the scene and the other was taken to a hospital with serious injuries – the collapse is the second fatal accident this year involving a crane working on the U.S. 41 expansion and redesign project)

CRANE FATALITIES 2 workers killed in crane collapse at University of Texas in Richardson (two construction workers died when a crane collapsed around 3 p.m. – the crane had been used to build a new arts and technology building and was being dismantled when the accident occurred – the crane came down just as a weather front packing high wind gusts – local meteorologist said 50-mph winds were blowing at the time, although it is not yet known whether the wind caused the collapse)

AMPUTATION w/ Circular Saw Worker back after slicing 2cm off finger (cuting off more than two centimeters of his middle finger has not stopped a construction worker returning to work – the man sliced off 2.5 centimeters of his left middle finger while cutting a piece of timber – the circular saw he was using while building the formwork had kicked back – the finger could not be re-attached)

CRANE FATALITY Businessman dies in work related accident in Crotone (one man is dead and another injured in a work-related crane accident – for reasons yet to be ascertained, the crane on which the 55 year old businessman was working collapsed causing his death – a worker was injured, not seriously, in the accident as well – according to a preliminary reconstruction of the trajedy, it would seem that it was the crane that the two persons were supposed to demolish that collapsed, as it was no longer being used)

WORKZONE FATALITY Hannibal man killed in construction zone accident (a construction worker, 31, has died after he was backed over by a truck in a construction zone – a loaded asphalt truck backed over him – he was picking up a highway sign in the southbound lanes of I-55 around 10:45 a.m. and crossed the right lane but did not see the asphalt truck backing up and was struck – he was pronounced dead at the scene)

FORKLIFT Construction worker injured in forklift rollover accident (one worker was injured when the extended forklift he was driving rolled over – the driver was taken to a Hospital where he is reported to be in good condition)

FALL from SCAFFOLDING Construction worker injured in fall at Dal (worker fell about three metres from scaffolding at a construction site – his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening – the injured man was taken to hospital to be treated at about 7:45 a.m.)

TRENCH Construction worker buried up to chest in Golden Gate Canyon accident (a worker, in his early 20s, injured in a construction accident was buried up to his chest in dirt in a trench – the accident happened about 12:50 p.m. –  the victim did not lose consciousness during the ordeal – cause of the accident is under investigation)

CRANE Worker injured in crane accident (man suffers broken leg when an object crashed through the cab of the crane – the operator was using the crane to lift an object when it came loose and crashed through the cab of the crane)

MISCELLANEOUS

LOTO FATALITY Maintenance worker hit and killed by rollercoaster car (a rollercoaster car hit and killed a maintenance worker at an amusement park – the worker entered a restricted zone when he was not supposed to – an investigation hopes to discover why the man entered the locked area – rescue workers treated six people at the site for shock, including one person who was sent to the hospital)

FATALITY Bridge worker dies after car hits him (a bridge attendant who was struck by a vehicle at the end of his shift has died – he was a DOT employee as a bridge attendant and had just left work when the accident occurred – he was walking to his car at the time – no charges have been filed against the driver in connection the accident)

County worker remains hospitalized after accident (a County Public Works employee, 58, was struck by a utility pole that snapped while he was clearing storm debris – he remained in critical condition – as another worker attempted to remove a tree with a county vehicle, the tree became stuck on a power line and caused a utility pole to snap – the pole fell on his head, knocking him out – officers at the scene performed CPR until his pulse returned – he was transported to a hospital and remained in critical condition and hadn’t regained consciousness as of Wednesday afternoon)

FORKLIFT Worker hurt when forklift fell through downtown sidewalk (a forklift operator has been taken to the hospital, after the equipment he was operating fell through the sidewalk – the worker was moving potted plants on the street, when the sidewalk gave way – he hit his head on the way down, and was hospitalized, though he is expected to be okay)

FIRE Two people burned in fire in San Benito (two Housing Authority employees were burned in a fire at an apartment building around 9:30 a.m. – the two were working on a countertop in a kitchen of unit No. 33 with a gallon of contact cement – they were applying some glue and apparently trying to heat up the contact cement on the stove and it caught fire – one man apparently tried to remove the one-gallon can from the stove – two ambulances and took the two workers to a hospital – one worker suffered third-degree burns to his hands and arms and the other had first- and second-degree burns)