Permit Required Confined Spaces

At 12:30 p.m. on June 7, 2021, an employee entered a sewer manhole to estimate the amount of materials needed to perform a manhole repair when the employee was overcome by high levels of hydrogen sulfide at the base of the manhole shortly after entry. The employee did not perform atmospheric monitoring and had not…...

We see it happen every once in a while, a worker has their face in the opening of the space.  They are exposed to the hazardous atmosphere within the space as the only air flow out of the space (which is at higher pressure) is right past their breathing zone.  They are exposed and unfortunately,…...

A central Illinois grain-handling cooperative exposed workers to serious engulfment hazards when soybeans collapsed inside a bin and engulfed an employee up to their waist.  An investigation by OSHA found that two workers were clearing the bin of crops and debris when the February 19, 2021, incident occurred. OSHA proposed $303,510 in penalties after identifying…...

Oregon OSHA has fined a custom crush winery in Dundee $11,100 for violating job safety standards designed to protect workers from the hazards of confined spaces.  The division cited the winery following an investigation into the death of a worker.  The investigation found that at approximately 10:30 a.m. Feb. 1, 2021, a cellar worker was…...

Just an FYI for those of you outside of Canada… there are fourteen (14) jurisdictions in Canada – one (1) federal, ten (10) provincial, and three (3) territorial each having its own occupational health and safety legislation. Federal legislation covers employees of the federal government including Crown agencies and corporations across Canada.  The federal health…...

See if this sounds all too familiar… three (3) workers remove a manhole cover to a sanitary sewer to check for water and blockage.  Unable to see anything, Employee #1 climbs down into the sewer to look for problems.  A co-worker working nearby sees Employees #2 and #3 enter the manhole and comes over to…...

A worker at a water technology company suffered an injury when a guardrail loosened and he fell and struck his head on a support beam as he lowered himself into a nearly 30-foot deep water test pit. OSHA received the report of the injury on Oct. 29, 2020. Its inspectors later determined that the company…...

The only item remaining in dispute is Item 3b of the citation. Item 3b alleges a violation of 29 CFR 1910.146(c)(4) for failure to develop and implement a permit-required confined space program to control entry of employees into the Fish Bin Chiller Alley at the Seward plant. This item was classified as a serious violation…...

Once again, a DOT container cleaning company had another fatal PRCS incident (2020) where we have an entrant and a would-be rescuer dying in a hazardous atmosphere – oxygen deficient.  In this incident, the would-be rescuer donned a full-face Air Purifying Respirator before he attempted his rescue effort but was overcome by the atmosphere and…...

For the life of me (pun intended) I can not find this fool who runs around and tells all these safety lies about OSHA compliance.  I used to think it had to be Casper The Friendly Ghosts’ brother – but now I am at a loss in combating some of the most fundamental safety principles. …...