An OSHA inspection identified several serious and recurring deficiencies in the company’s Process Safety Management program. As a result of these conditions, OSHA cited the facility, the nation’s leading propane supplier, on Sept. 24, 2015, for three repeated and five serious violations of workplace safety and health standards. Proposed fines total $135,000. OSHA found the facility did not inspect and establish mechanical integrity procedures for six storage tanks and the underground piping system. The company also did not inspect and test a piping system properly and failed to ensure accurate piping and instrument diagrams. OSHA had cited the company in April 2013 for similar hazards in Texas. The agency issued citations for the following serious violations:
- Lacking process safety information about the piping system.
- Failing to document the safe design of a 30,000-gallon storage tank.
- Inadequately evaluating possible safety and health effects in the event of a controls failure.
- Incorrectly rigging personal fall arrest systems to prevent falls for employees who worked atop railroad cars.
- Lacking rescue procedures for employees who worked alone atop railroad cars in a remote area.
Here is a breakdown of the citations: