An experienced electrician checking conductors at an industrial facility unknowingly accessed an energized breaker bucket inside a substation and shorted phase to phase on the line side of the energized breaker switch at 347/600V. This resulted in an electrical shock, creating an arc flash. The worker suffered first and second-degree burns to their wrist, hand, […]
At 8:04 a.m. on May 11, 2023, an employee working for an oil and gas support services company was found dead. On 5/10/23, the night before, the employee had instructed his coworkers from other contractors to go home, and he would finish the job. This was the last time anyone had spoken to the employee
At 8:00 a.m. on May 8, 2014, an employee was inspecting fire extinguishers. The fire extinguisher discharged and struck the employee in the head, killing him. OSHA Case File
On May 13, 2020, Employee #1 and Employee #2 were working to pressurize portable fire extinguishers. At some point, the extinguisher being worked on by the Employees exploded.
On October 16, 2023, Employee #1 worked for a construction gas & oil support contractor. Coworkers were cutting and welding an eye-lifting plate on a compressor skid. Miscellaneous petroleum products had been allowed to accumulate on, in, and around the compressor skid area, creating a fire hazard.
Six people were confirmed dead in a boiler explosion at a wood factory in the southern province of Dong Nai on May 1, 2024. The accident also injured five others. The provincial People’s Committee has offered condolences and financial support to the victims’ families (20 million VND or 789 USD for each fatality and 10
In the world of industrial safety, we are not at a loss for the desire to try new things. Many consulting companies are waiting to sell us their shiny gadgets. One of these latest crazes is called “SIF”—Serious Injuries and Fatalities. The concept behind this model is based on the progress many have made in
He was working for a subcontractor on April 13, 2022, when a GC foreman used a flame torch to dry an area of the floor of an enclosed mechanical room beneath the football stadium as he and another worker were applying a flammable material to the floor. The torch sparked an explosion, and he was
An Ohio subsidiary of one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers could have prevented a 26-year-old employee in Franklin from being fatally crushed in October 2023 if the company had provided proper machine guarding. OSHA responded after being informed of the incident and learned the worker, on the job for about a year, was placing
Are you tired of playing the OSHA Compliance game that requires us to “comply” with standards that are 50 years old? The International Fire Code (IFC) is an excellent resource for taking your hazardous materials handling systems/processes to the next level. The IFC is used or adopted in 42 states, including the District of Columbia,
How do you differentiate between an amputation without bone and avulsions?
This article aligns with my previous article, “When are High-Vis garments no longer considered High-Vis?” It is in the same spirit of managing the PPE that so many workers rely on daily. And anyone who has been in safety for six months or longer can tell us horror stories of what they have seen with
