2017 Video of the Week #31 (Crane Tip)
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AIR ALLIANCE HOUSTON’s lawsuit against EPA for delaying the RMP Amendments
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EPA RMP citations @ food plant (NH3 & $5K; this was the plant that had the NH3 explosion on 7/7/17)
I usually do not post the smaller settlement agreements, but this one caught my eye. The inspection was done in 2015 and this was settled this year; the agreement is dated April 28, 2017. This case caught my eye because it was the same plant that had the NH3 Explosion (at least according to the…...
2017 Photo of the Week #30 (Two aerial mistakes don’t make a right!)
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2017 Video of the Week #30 (Gasoline Spill + Floor Scrubber = Flash Fire)
This week we saw the second serious fire in a vehicle dealership service area in as many months (Click Here for the Jasper, AL fatal (triple fatality) fire on June 12th). This one occurred when a cleaning worker, using a walk-behind floor scrubber knocked over a 30-gallon drum of gasoline that was part of a “gasoline…...
EPA RMP citations @ refinery (HF Releases & $524K)
Hydrogen Fluoride (HF) is a regulated substance listed as a toxic substance. The refinery uses 250,000 lbs of HF at its facility as part of the processes, and if released, could affect 220,000 people within a fifteen (15) mile radius of the facility, according to the Risk Management Program submittals. The refinery uses a water cannon…...
Here’s a LOTO scenario many don’t think about (Lock removal & $17K)
Recently IN-OSHA issued citations to the nation’s largest grocery store chain when management at one of their retail outlets removed a contractor’s LOTO lock without following their own (or the contractor’s lock removal procedures). We can get some idea as to what happened based on the citations, but bottom line… BEFORE cutting off a LOTO lock, procedures…...
Why cooling towers should be considered PRCS’s
In my experience, I have found most older built cooling towers to be Permit-Required Confined Spaces (PRCS); however, some of the newer designs have addressed the hazards which make these units PRCS (e.g., guarding the fan and shaft within the unit) or these spaces may be eligible for reclassification using 1910.146(c)(7). But this OSHA fatality inspection…...
Which IDLH values do you use in your respirator use decisions?
This week I was more than surprised to learn that not everyone uses the most up-to-date NIOSH IDLH values when deciding on their respiratory protection needs. This was brought to my attention after a SAFTENG member contacted me about my 2012 article “What type of respirator do I need?”. This safety professional had downloaded a…...
OSHA issues Construction PRCS citations @ FL manhole triple fatalities (H2S & $119K)
OSHA cited a South Florida utility company and related contracting company after the agency’s investigation into the deaths of three workers who succumbed to toxic gases in a manhole on Jan. 16, 2017. A 34-year-old pipe layer entered the manhole – a confined space – and quickly became unresponsive. A 49-year-old laborer entered the hole…...
What am I? (special edition for Safety Pro’s)
What am I? I claim more injuries than any other force on earth I am present in every single workplace on this planet earth OSHA has standards to control me, but I am often ignored or overlooked Every working adult is aware of my presence and strength Without me, life as we know it would cease…...
2017 Photo of the Week #29 (Trench Shocker)
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