61 incidents & 1 update (3/31/16)

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2016 Fatality Tracker

Industrial

GUARDING/LOTO Industrial accident traps worker in paper bail at Philly warehouse (an industrial laborer, 35, is recovering after he became trapped in a paper bail at a warehouse around 11:35 a.m. – victim became trapped beneath the paper bail while operating the machine, injuring his right leg – firefighters and medics responded to the scene and freed the man from the machine before transporting him to a nearby hospital – he was listed in stable condition)

ASPHYXIATION Employee found dead at TimkenSteel was also Creston police officer (worker was found unresponsive while checking fire extinguishers at the Plant just before 4 p.m. – nitrogen is suspected)

FORKLIFT FATALITY Man critically hurt in forklift accident in southwest Wichita (worker, 21, is in critical condition after an industrial accident involving a forklift –  he was not breathing after the accident at 5:43 a.m. – he was driving the forklift with a load raised up and leaned forward and appears to have hit the button that lowers the lift, and it came down against his head and neck, pinning him against the steering wheel – two other employees saw that the man was trapped, and they raised up the load – emergency crews pulled the man from the forklift and took him to a Hospital in critical condition – latest news is the worker passed away)

Worker Injured at TPCO Plant in Gregory (worker was injured and was taken to a hospital for treatment – no word as to the extent or nature of the injury)

Worker dead after Harmac pulp mill accident near Nanaimo (worker, in his mid 30s, was killed – it’s still unclear what happened, but he fell while he was working around a chip pile – this was the second death at a Vancouver Island pulp mill this year)

GUARDING/LOTO FATALITY w/ AUGER Update: Kearney Man Killed in Grain Elevator Accident (worker, 41, is dead after an accident at a grain elevator around 1:30 p.m. – initial reports indicate the worker was in the process of drawing grain from a bin and was caught by an operating auger)

1 worker dead, several injured in Manassas food warehouse rack collapse (one person has died and six other people are injured after a large shelving rack collapsed on them at a food distribution warehouse around 3:40 p.m. – an interior rack system used to store food products collapsed on several employees – a male worker was pronounced dead at the scene – an aisle of steel pallet racks holding thousands of boxes of frozen food products came crashing down – two of the workers were in critical condition and had to be airlifted to the hospital – cause for the rack collapse is being investigated)

FATAL EXPLOSION @ QUARRY Worker dead in quarry explosion (worker, 42, died in an explosion at a Quarry – he had been blasting rock when the accident occurred – he was walking away from the routine blast when debris hit and killed him around 6:30 p.m. about 2 miles from the main gate of the facility)

LOTO FATALITY Worker killed in freak accident at cement factory (contract worker 25, was killed at 12.40 pm when he was working on a conveyor belt at the plant’s production unit – he was working at the plant when all of a sudden his left hand got stuck in the conveyor belt and was severed – his fellow workers rushed to the belt site, but by the time they took him to the hospital, it was too late – doctors pronounced him brought dead)

MINE FATALITY Kentucky coal miner killed by falling debris; 4th fatality since ’02 (coal miner, 48, was killed by falling debris – it was the fourth fatality at the mine since 2002 – he was doing mine maintenance around 8:15 a.m., when he was hit by falling material and killed)

AMMONIA FATALITY One worker dead after ammonia leak at Boston warehouse (officials continue to investigate after a worker was killed after an ammonia leak at a warehouse  around 5:55 p.m. – crews later found the victim’s body on the second floor by the stairs – around 5,300 pounds of the chemical leaked into the building)

TOLUENE FLASH FIRE Chandler Fire officials: Worker at electronics parts supplier Isola Group seriously burned (worker was seriously burned at an electronics parts manufacturer as a solvent he was working with caught fire – employee was offloading tolulene from a 55-gallon drum when the solvent caught fire – fire was out within a few minutes because the building had an alarm and an extinguishing system – worker was taken to a Medical Center burn unit for treatment)

FLASH FIRE Authorities say a man was severely burned in a fire at an oil treater plant south of Gillette (worker was severely burned in a fire at an oil treater plant – he was conscious after the blast, but was flown for treatment – cause of the fire is still under investigation – no one else was hurt in the fire, which was extinguished with water and foam)

FATAL EXPLOSION Explosion on Tanker Kills Two, One Missing (an explosion on an inland product tanker in a port killed two and injured three, with one worker remaining missing – explosion occurred at about 0840 hours on the vessel which was in shipyard for repairs – two yard workers were thrown from the ship by the blast and killed; a search team of emergency responders, including divers, are searching for one worker who remains missing – the shock wave cracked windows nearby and threw ship components weighing hundreds of pounds up to half a kilometer away from the vessel – fire department had the blaze under control in about an hour – authorities suspect a gas explosion sparked by work on the tanker as the cause – the fire department told Germany’s RP-Online that a measurement of flammable vapors in a cargo hold may not have been taken prior to the blast, leaving workers unaware of dangerous conditions)

CRUSHED OSHA investigating after worker crushed between semis (worker, 57, died after he was pinned between two semi trucks at a warehouse – he was found unresponsive in the parking lot of the Warehouse – initial reports indicate that he had been pinned between two semi trucks, one of which was backing up – he was pronounced dead at 1:53 p.m. – autopsy found that he died from multiple crush injuries)

EXPLOSION Explosion at Deeside Industrial Park was caused by a fault (investigators have ruled that an explosion at a commercial building was caused by a fault – worker suffered minor burns as a result of the blaze – Fire and Rescue Service confirmed that the fire was caused by a fault which led to solvent vapours igniting inside ducting – one person suffered minor burns and was treated by an on-site first aider but did not need to go to hospital – explosion caused ‘substantial damage’ to both the ducting and a printing machine)

LOTO FATALITY Man (40s) dies from crush injuries after workplace accident (worker, in his early 40s, has died following an accident at a factory – he was taken to a Hospital with crush injuries but later passed away – he was working at a foods plant when machinery is thought to have come down on top of him at around 8.30pm)

UPDATE ConAgra must pay $108.9 million in lawsuit over fatal 2009 blast; verdict likely a Nebraska record (four people died as a result of the explosion, which was caused by a natural gas leak during water heater installation – the case is related to damages and injuries stemming from a fatal explosion at the plant in North Carolina in 2009 – company plans to appeal)

EXPLOSION Explosion and fire at Sonneborn plant in Petrolia, Butler County (an explosion and flames at a petroleum processing plant with at least one injury reported – incident happened at about 1:15 p.m. – it was not immediately known what caused the explosion and fire, but dispatchers reported at least one injury, though his or her condition is unknown – there were no evacuations as of 2:30 p.m.)

BOILER EXPLOSION Boiler explosion destroys building wall, no injuries reported (a paper processing plant is missing 40-feet of wall after it was destroyed in a boiler plant explosion – explosion took place just before 5 a.m. – there was heavy fire both in and around the scene when crews arrived – all employees were accounted for with no injuries reported)

COAL DUST EXPLOSION Golden Valley Electric investigates coal plant explosion (the plant has been down since a coal dust explosion – the utility is still in the early stages of reviewing the explosion at the Healy 2 coal fired power plant – the explosion happened within the plant’s coal pulverization and transport facility, and at least one major component needs to be replaced – a repair cost estimate is not yet available)

Construction

TRENCH FATALITY Worker killed in Mentor after trench collapses (worker, 28, was killed when a trench collapsed – according to OSHA, compliance officers responded for a worker who was trapped and severely hurt from a trench cave in approximately 6- to 8-feet deep – accident occurred as a water line was being relocated by a contractor)

CRANE FATALITY Worker Crushed to Death in Crane Accident at West Hollywood Construction Site (worker was fatally crushed between a crane and possibly a trailer at a construction site shortly after 4 p.m.)

Construction worker injured in accident at Wrigley Field (construction worker was injured when pipes fell on her while she was working in the lower level of the stadium – the woman, in her mid-30s, was not trapped and did not have to be rescued, but she complained of facial, neck and back pain – she was injured while working in the basement of the west side of the ballpark – she was taken in good condition to a Medical Center)

CRANE FATALITY Worker dies in Sacramento County industrial accident (worker, 43, was killed after a large piece of steel fell and hit him just before 2 p.m. at a work site – Cal/OSHA investigators determined that a load shifted, causing a large piece of steel to fall and hit the worker)

HEAVY EQUIPMENT w/ a FALL Worker critically injured in Rye construction accident (worker, 29, was critically injured in a construction accident when he was hit by a front-end loader – he is in critical condition – he broke both his legs and suffered multiple cuts and bruises shortly before 2 p.m. – he had been operating a 2014 Caterpillar front-end loader and got out to inspect the construction area – as he was standing in front of the machine, it rolled forward and pinned him against a concrete wall – another worker jumped into the machine and backed it off the pinned worker, who then fell over the wall and landed on a concrete floor 9 feet below)

WORKZONE 3 dead, 1 hurt after SUV crashes into utility truck carrying worker in bucket in Tacoma (three people died and one is in serious condition after an SUV crashed into a utility truck that was carrying a worker in a bucket – the worker in the bucket was taken to the hospital in serious condition, while all three in the SUV died – SUV was traveling at about 55 mph when it crashed through construction site closure barricades set up for the truck, then continued into an alley and rear-ended the truck)

FATAL FALL Construction Worker’s Death in Fall From 53rd Floor of DTLA Building Investigated as Possible Suicide (the death of a construction worker, 36, who died after falling from the 53rd floor and landing on a passing vehicle was being investigated as a possible suicide – he was on his second day of the job when he fell from the under-construction skyscraper about 12:07 p.m.)

FATALITY – CAUGHT BETWEEN Construction worker killed in equipment accident (worker had been trapped between two pieces of equipment at the construction site of a new bridge – medical personnel worked to treat the victim, but he died of his injuries on the scene)

WORKZONE FATALITY Road construction worker killed after being struck by vehicle (a road construction worker, 42, died after being struck by a vehicle around 9:30 Sunday morning – he was standing in a construction zone when he was hit by an eastbound vehicle – he was working as a flagger and was pronounced dead at the scene – driver was cited and jailed on suspicion of driving under the influence of drugs)

FALL from LADDER Worker injured after falling off ladder near Weston and Steeles (worker, in his 60s, fell off a ladder while working at 8:21 a.m. – he had serious, but non-life threatening injuries, and he was transported to hospital – the height at which the man fell from remains unclear)

FATAL FALL from BRIDGE Man dies in construction accident on U.S. 34; worker fell from bridge into river (worker, 28, fell while doing resurfacing work on a highway bridge – co-workers attempted to retrieve him but were unable to do so – his body was found 60 yards from where he fell into the river at around 11:00 a.m. – he fell about 20 feet)

FATAL FALL Fall kills worker at apartment construction site (construction worker fell five stories at an apartment building under construction – it appears the worker fell off an unfinished balcony – a fork lift’s platform was left at the fifth story balcony where the worker apparently fell – paint cans were on the balcony as if they had just been off-loaded from the forklift)

FALL from ROOF Worker injured in fall during Lincoln prison roofing project (worker was injured in a fall while working on roofing project at a prison around 9 a.m. – prison staff members tended to the man until medics arrived and he was taken to a hospital – can’t provide any information about how far the man fell or what he was doing before the fall – his injuries are considered non-life-threatening)

FALL Construction worker injured in fall from steel structure in Riverdale (construction worker fell about 20 feet from a steel superstructure at a new building shortly after 10:30 a.m. – worker had fallen about 20 feet and landed on a roof deck – he was alert and talking)

WORKZONE Calif. Motorcyclist Hits Landscaping Worker, Both Seriously Injured (two people were hospitalized when a motorcyclist struck a man standing by the side of the road – motorcycle was headed east about 7:30 a.m. when the rider swerved right to pass a car just before the intersection – motorcyclist then reportedly sideswiped a landscaping truck that was parked on the side of the road and careened into an employee of the landscaping company who’d been standing outside the truck)

FATAL FALL from ROOF Construction Worker Dies After Falling From Roof in Virginia (construction worker has died after falling several feet into the basement of a home about 8:40 a.m. – worker fell from the second floor of a home that’s currently under construction – first responders had to perform CPR on the worker when they arrived at the scene – victim was transported to an area hospital, where he later died)

FORKLIFT w/ AMPUTATION German construction worker has lower left leg amputated after it was crushed in workplace accident (construction worker, 31, had his lower left leg amputated after it was crushed in a workplace accident despite the desperate work of colleagues and paramedics – he suffered a horrific leg injury when a heavy object fell from a fork lift operated by one of his colleagues)

FALL ICE FATALITY Ottawa construction worker dies after being hit by ice chunk (construction worker, 25, is dead after being hit by a large chunk of ice while working in a 31-metre-deep pit around 7:15 a.m. – he was able to speak shortly after the accident but eventually lost consciousness – he was hit by a slab of ice that slid off the side of the wall – the complete slab of ice was about a 40-ft [12 metre] length – he was taken to the hospital in critical condition and later died)

TRENCH FATALITY Minatare man killed in Alliance construction accident (police received a 911 call reporting a trench collapse at a construction site at about 1:20 p.m. – caller said a worker, 61, had been installing pipe at the time of the cave-in and was now trapped in the bottom of an eight foot trench – police and fire personnel responded to the scene and found construction workers digging as fast as they could to uncover a man trapped under a large amount of dirt – it took several minutes to remove enough dirt to allow EMS personnel to check the man’s vitals – County Coroner pronounced the man dead at the scene – workers had been installing sewer lines to service a residential home – one other construction worker, 19, was injured during the collapse and was transported by ambulance to a Hospital where he was treated for minor injuries and later released)

ELECTRICAL Contractor suffers electrical burns in accident at LIPA substation (a painting subcontractor, 47, suffered a severe electrical shock and burns and was in “very serious condition” after brushing up against roof bushings at a substation – he was sealing the roof of the substation when he “brushed up against roof bushings” and suffered a severe electric shock)

CONFINED SPACE FATALITY 1 dead, 1 injured at CF Industries site (one worker died and another was hospitalized after an industrial accident at a construction site at 2:40 p.m. – two men were working in a tower tank when one went unconscious – the second man escaped out of the tank and was transported to a Medical Center for treatment – crews retrieved the body of the second man, who was pronounced dead – cause of the incident is under investigation)

PRESSURE TESTING 5 taken to hospitals — 1 critical — in Bayonne explosion (five people have been taken to hospitals, one in critical condition, after an explosion at 9:01 a.m. – workers were conducting a “pressure test of a gas line” when a “small explosion” happened – a contractor was installing a new gas main and testing the main with air when the incident occurred – the gas line “failed” while it was being tested with pressurized air – two police officers were also at the scene at the time of the explosion – one worker is in critical condition, one is in serious condition and the third is being treated for minor injuries)

FATAL FALL from SCAFFOLDING Man killed after falling 70 feet at northern Alberta work site (worker, 29, was killed when he fell about 70 feet (21 metres) while working – he was doing scaffolding work on a new storage tank on a pipeline project when he was killed around 10:45 a.m.)

FALL during HOTWORK Man falls 50 feet into bottom of water tank in Prince William County (worker was injured when he fell into a large out-of-service water tank – the contractor for the county’s service authority, was doing welding work on the interior part of the tank that is part of a tall tower – he was getting the tank ready for sandblasting and painting – he fell about 50 feet to the bottom of the tower’s bowel – there was no water in the tank at the time – it is not clear what caused the welder to fall – county’s service authority said the worker was wearing a safety harness at the time)

HOTWORK Massive fire engulfs ‘Sabzi Mandi’ opp Mayo hospital in Gomtinagar; around 150 shops gutted (it is said that welding work was on at the roof top of a hotel building located adjacent to the vegetable market – welding sparks fell at a shop that took the shape of inferno – around 150 shops have been completely gutted under the flames)

Miscellaneous

FATAL FALL from ROOF High winds possible factor in man’s fatal fall (high winds are being looked at as a possible factor in the death of a worker, 57, who fell from the roof of a building just after 7 a.m.  – he was the building manager and he went up to the roof to check for possible damage caused by the winds)

CONFINED SPACE RESCUE – ENGULFMENT Conway Springs grain bin worker rescued from grain elevator (nearly seven hours after a grain elevator worker, 21, fell into a bin of grain, he was pulled to safety – he entered the elevator bin to do maintenance work shortly after 1 p.m. – he was wearing a harness and rope and was with other maintenance workers – the grain shifted when he was working – he was extricated at 8:25 p.m.)

FATAL FALL from ROOF Charlotte County employee dies following accident (county building inspector, 62, died this week after falling from the roof of a Furniture business – he fell to his death while conducting a building inspection for a commercial roof permit – he worked for the County Community Development Department for 15 years as a building inspection and code compliance officer)

BUCKET TRUCK FATALITY City worker killed in an accident at Vancouver’s Connaught Park (city worker, in his 40s, is dead after getting caught up in an accident about 9:30 a.m. – employee was doing pruning and removing limbs from trees at the park – worker was in a boom-mounted bucket, elevated off the ground, when a large tree limb came crushing down on the bucket and pinned the worker inside)

WALK-IN FREEZER FATALITY Hotel Worker Found Dead Inside Walk-In Freezer After 13 Hours (worker, 61, was found about 9 a.m. – she was found dead inside a walk-in freezer at the hotel where she worked after her family called to say she never came home – she may have entered the freezer in the lower level kitchen area just after 8 p.m. – she may have tried to get out of the freezer, which has an exit mechanism, but it was not clear if it was working properly)

LOTO Team saves man with arm stuck in salt spreader in Woodbury, Minn (public safety officials saved a worker, 35, from losing his arm after it got stuck in the large salt spreader he was cleaning – Police and Fire Departments arrived on the scene at 2 p.m., they found the worker standing on a ladder with his arm stuck in the conveyer of the salt spreader – he had been balancing on a step stool and was able to turn off the salt spreader to keep it from pulling him further in using the remote he kept in his pocket – firefighters and public works officials were able to free Johnson’s arm in less than 45 minutes – he had broken his right arm and was in shock and was taken to the hospital, where he has since undergone the first in a number of surgeries he will have to have on his arm)

FERTILIZER PROCESS FIRE Minnesota worker burned after fertilizer operation explodes in Wisconsin (worker, 59, was severely burned after a fertilizer operation inside a semi-trailer exploded – his injuries were extensive – the trailer became fully engulfed in fire and exploded while four contracted workers ran a fertilizer system inside it – the system included vegetable oil, which heats up 200-pound batches of chicken manure that are fed through an auger-type device that mixes in a small amount of sulfuric acid – the operation was running smoothly until a power surge from a generator shook a line loose and started the vegetable oil on fire – several workers jumped out of the trailer as it became engulfed in flames, including one man who injured his shoulder)

FLASH FIRE Custodian burned in cleaning incident at Scoggins Middle School in McKinney (custodial worker suffered burns after a flash fire involving cleaning equipment – staffer was using a floor buffer when it came in contact with a can that erupted and the worker got burned – no students were injured nor were any in the area when the incident occurred – officials are working with the fire department to determine the cause of the flash fire)

EXPLOSION Explosion at Georgia Gwinnett College Seriously Injures Worker (an explosion at a College that went off after firefighters responded to a fire alarm seriously injured a campus worker – the explosion, which came from a women’s bathroom in classroom Building A, caused “burns and potential blast injuries” to a woman who works for a food contractor on campus – she is expected to survive)

EXPLOSION Nashua Worker Hurt in Industrial Accident (worker at a warehouse reportedly suffered burns in an industrial accident – the male worker suffered non-life-threatening injuries while working – he was treated at a local hospital and released – the cause of the accident was under investigation)

ARC FLASH Worker injured after small electrical explosion in North York (electrician was injured following a small electrical explosion at an office building around 10 a.m. – the electrician was working on an electrical panel when a small explosion occurred and he suffered minor injuries – no one else was hurt)

HOTWORK Welding sparks small fire at Children’s Hospital (ongoing construction in the basement of the Hospital caused the facility basement and first floor to fill with smoke about 11a.m. – the cause of the smoldering and smoke was due to construction grinding in a non-patient area)