We have 12 SCBA bottles/cylinders that were manufactured in 2003. These specific DOT bottles/cylinders came with a 15-year service life; meaning the service life expired in 2018. They were all Hydro’ed on schedule for their three (3) hydros in 2008, 2013, and 2018. KEY POINT: None of the bottles/cylinders have been used since 2018 (pointing […]
In an industrial and occupational safety context, a line break accident occurs when workers open pipes, valves, flanges, or vessels containing hazardous materials—such as toxic chemicals, flammable liquids, high-pressure gases, or high-temperature steam—and an unintended release occurs. Because these accidents can result in severe chemical burns, toxic inhalation, explosions, or physical trauma from pressure blasts,
OSHA uses the word “specific” 10 times in its LOTO standard, and yet, the vast majority of the LOTO programs we come across are not even specific to the facility, much less specific in how they define and quantify critical elements. To save you time from looking them all up to prove I’m wrong, here
OSHA 1910.147(d)(5)(ii) is one of the most critical, yet frequently overlooked, requirements of the Lockout/Tagout (LOTO) standard. It moves LOTO from a static, one-time task (“lock it and check it”) to a dynamic process that accounts for the physical reality of residual and regenerative energy. Think about isolating “compressed air” to a machine/equipment and the
Four (4) workers were injured at a worksite on April 30, 2024, while offloading flammable solvents from a vacuum truck into a storage tanker. At the same time, other workers positioned a hydrovac truck in an adjacent bay to offload a wastewater-and-slurry mixture. During this process, flammable vapors were released and drawn into the idling
An independent contractor in Denton, Texas, was severely burned and fell from an extension ladder after his clothing ignited during a flash fire. The worker was torch-cutting steel walls on a transformer unit to dismantle it for a scrapyard. A lawsuit filed in late June alleges the provided fire watch was improperly positioned and inattentive.
The proposed OSHA Emergency Response standard is currently in the final review stages. According to OSHA’s most recent Unified Agenda (published in July 2026), the final rule is projected to be published in April 2027. Once finalized, this rule will completely replace the outdated 1980 “Fire Brigades” standard (29 CFR 1910.156) and dramatically expand basic
Citation 2 Item 34 Type of Violation: Willful-Serious29 CFR 1910.119(m)(1): The employer did not investigate each incident which resulted in, or could reasonably have resulted in a catastrophic release of highly hazardous chemicals in the workplace:
Many in safety may not recognize that the “burst pressure” of piping is NOT the same as the Maximum Allowable Working Pressure (MAWP). ASME B31.3 requires the facility to identify and work within the MAWP. For those who may not know the difference and why it matters…
July 10, 2026, marks the 50th anniversary of the Seveso chemical disaster in Italy. The European Commission has reaffirmed its commitment to the Seveso Directive, which serves as a global benchmark for industrial safety, while emphasizing the need to adapt to emerging risks like cybersecurity and the energy transition.
The 2026 edition of the code no longer relies on cross-referencing NFPA 55. This code now has full scope over all requirements related to hydrogen storage, use, and handling. This is a result of the NFPA Standards Council clarifying that the scope of the technical committee responsible for revising this code must be referred to
First, I am as guilty as anyone for using these terms interchangeably, but this week I was in a deep discussion on PRCS Isolation and those on the other end of the phone were getting confused as I was using these terms interchangeably. So I am setting the record straight on this topic, as it
