Safety Thought of the Week… are worker behaviors the problem?
I know I made these mistakes in my early years. In the early 1990’s “Behavior Based Safety” was all the rage, and it had me “hook, line, and sinker.” Sometimes, I wish I was still in contact with some operators/maintenance tech who got the raw end of our (mostly mine) investigations and causal analysis so
Wrong Chemical – Wrong Tank (Cl2)
A total of seven people were taken to the hospital after a chlorine gas leak was reported. The cause of the leak was a truck driver who delivered a chemical to a Water Plant and “unintentionally mixed two chemical compounds in a holding tank.” This then released the chlorine gas “from the tank vent.” The
CSB Update on Fatal H2S Release @ TX Refinery
Interesting facts about this event: On October 10, 2024, at 4:23 p.m., approximately 27,000 pounds of hydrogen sulfide gas were released during maintenance at the Refinery in Deer Park, Texas. The release fatally injured two (2) contract workers. Background Information The facility is a petroleum refinery located in Deer Park, Texas and is a Limited
IMPORTANCE OF HAZARDOUS ZONE MARKINGS AND SAFETY PROTOCOL AWARENESS (USCG)
This United States Coast Guard alert supports my expectation that we must demarcate our HAZLOCs. I usually get pushback as the code does not explicitly require the boundaries of our HAZLOCs to be marked in any way. But in reality, if we want workers to respect the hazards of working inside a HAZLOC, then we
IMPORTANCE OF ADHERING TO HOT WORK PROCEDURES & IMPLEMENTING ROBUST LOCKOUT/TAGOUT PROGRAMS (USCG)
A recent marine casualty, resulting in a fire and severe injuries to two crewmembers, highlights the risks associated with:
Changing our fit-test methods requires an MOC
For decades, businesses have used the TSI Porta-Count QNFT method to fit test tight-fitting respirators. Today, new variations of this NIOSH-approved method (e.g., Condensation Nuclei Counter(CNC) are faster, and we have seen many organizations adopt these new methods. However, changing our Fit-Testing method may require an MOC. I say “may” as not all PSM processes
Respirator Fit-Testing Facts (NIOSH)
NIOSH research tells us: Source: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/npptl/pdfs/Fit-test-10.508_FNL-508.pdf
Does changing a chemical supplier require an MOC
Imagine the purchasing manager announcing at a staff meeting that the business is changing the supplier for one of your PSM/RMP-covered chemicals. There is nothing special about this chemical; it is a 100% pure solution/gas, so you think nothing is changing. But this chemical has come under a lot of questions by yours truly, and
2 safety-critical devices in pressure testing our piping
It is great when I can convince an organization to pressure test and leak test its process piping. However, if this task is not done according to the book, we may have created a serious hazard. Two (2) safety-critical devices are often overlooked during pressure and leak testing, and missing either one or both can
Nitrogen in the breathing air system
Initial findings in an employee’s death show breathing air was compromised while working in a paint booth after the breathing air system unintentionally allowed nitrogen to get into the system. The worker, 61, was found not breathing just after noon on Feb. 24 in a paint booth. This incident occurred in the same area where
When Welding goes Wrong
This is why we MUST have a Quality Assurance process in our piping installations when welding joins the pipe. The same applies to the construction process vessels; however, most of those are “shop-built,” and we are outside the scope of those vessels. But a “field-erected” vessel would fall into our sphere of control.