On April 10, 2024, an employee, 30, working as a quality inspector for a sewing, needlework, and piece goods manufacturer, was performing the rolling process, which she completed by approximately 11:00 a.m. After completing some housekeeping, the employee pressed the light curtain bypass button located on the fence of the HAAS machine on the alley…...
We hear these horror stories every year… a worker climbs inside a hazard area of a large piece of machinery WITHOUT the aid of LOTO, and another worker comes along and turns on the machine, as he/she was unaware of their co-worker being inside the machine. These incidents are TRAGIC for so many people, all…...
Another case of LOTO failure and co-worker energizing the machine leading to a death Read More »
This is a MUST READ for safety professionals engaged in developing, implementing, and managing a LOTO program. The facility was doing everything RIGHT in terms of program, procedures, and training; yet a worker violated LOTO in the presence of the Shift Supervisor who had only been in his role for 1-month. The OSHRC laid out…...
OSHRC affirms LOTO Citations in mill worker’s death Read More »
I will probably catch a lot of flack for repeating this (as I have this debate at least annually), as very few agree with me, but it needs to be repeated! The use of a Lockout Hasp, the device shown to the left, is NOT associated with the phrase “group lockout.” And yes, I am…...
The use of a Lockout Hasp is NOT “group lockout” Read More »
Back in 2017, we discussed the hazards associated with dock levelers and working under the dock plate. These are indeed permit-required confined spaces, albeit ones that can be RECLASSIFIED using basic energy control methods (i.e., Lockout). In that 2017 article, I shared a video from a dock leveler manufacturer on how to isolate the dock…...
Dock Plate fatality Read More »
On March 18, 2024, @ 11:00 a.m., it appears that Employee #1, 32, was standing under the raised forks of a forklift truck. The forks/backrest assembly appeared to have fallen onto Employee #1. Employee #1 died due to decapitation…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready a member? Log...
GRAVITY can be a form of Hazardous Energy (PIT Masts decapitates worker) Read More »
On March 8, 2024, @ 4:50 p.m., an employee, 32, entered a unitizer (pallet stacker) machine when it engaged, crushing him. The employee was killed. CLICK HERE to see the video of the machine involved Company removed guards, failed to ensure power shutoff with workers nearby Both management and workers told inspectors that the permanent…...
Box Former machine failure to Guard & LOTO fatality (clearing jam & $648K) Read More »
On February 6, 2024, at 10:00 p.m., an employee, 26, was repairing leaking water on pump equipment without lockout/tagout. While the engine was on, the employee began to unscrew a high-pressure valve nipple. The pressure was not released from the valve, causing it to blow off and strike the employee in the head and chest…....
When “water” is a Hazardous Form of Energy needing LOTO Read More »
On November 3, 2020, at 1:15 p.m., Employee #1, 55, employed by an HVAC company, was working at a customer’s commercial facility. He was removing a coupler and blind from the intake header of an air dryer. The employee did not first relieve the air pressure from the header. When he loosened the coupler bolts,…...
Stored energy can be LETHAL Read More »
Most safety pros have seen the videos of workers in car washes doing some outlandish behaviors. We may have been snickered at what we watched. But this is the real result of what we saw in those videos… At midnight on January 13, 2024, an employee, 26, cleaned the car wash tunnel and equipment. The…...
Carwash fatality (blunt-force trauma & strangulation) Read More »
At its facility, Respondent converts paper products into finished products such as rolls of toilet paper and paper towels. The paper products are run through machinery operated by Respondent’s employees. One of these machines is the R74 Line Rewinder (Rewinder) machine. The Rewinder transforms a 10-foot by 10-foot giant roll of toilet paper into the…...
OSHRC decision on Minor Servicing using an Interlock and Machine Specific Procedures Read More »
I was recently involved in a safety review at a client with two (2) separate LOTO failure events in a month. I know this client and the PM very well, and I was never more disappointed in their decisions about the discipline around these two (2) very different LOTO events. One event resulted in NO…...
