Permit Required Confined Spaces

We have all seen it… the person assigned to be the PRCS Attendant (and Fire Watches suffer this infliction as well) are the youngest, weakest, least trained, least experienced, lowest paid, and most incapable person on the job/team. As I have written about before, one of my former employers actually but an age restriction on…...

OSHA published a Letter of Interpretation making it clear that we can use “alternative entry” methods such that when the physical hazard(s) can be ELIMINATED OR ISOLATED through engineering controls, AND any atmospheric hazards can be CONTROLLED through forced-air ventilation and continuous atmospheric monitoring, the space may be entered using the alternate procedures set forth…...

At 12:45 a.m. on December 28, 2019, Employee #1 entered a tanker truck that last held Vinyl Acetate Polymer Residue, a hazardous waste material, and became unresponsive while in the tanker. Employee #2 and Employee #3 entered the tank to rescue Employee #1 and also became unresponsive. Employee #4 entered the tank and was able…...

Today, the NFPA adopted some interesting revisions to their NFPA 350, Guide for Safe Confined Space Entry and Work.  One item that many may find interesting is 8.6.5 Pipes and lines that run through a confined space… Here are the most notable updates/revisions: Non-Members can find the changes Here…. Membership Required You must be a...

From 2011 to 2018, 1,030 workers died from occupational injuries involving a confined space. The annual figures range from a low of 88 in 2012 to a high of 166 in 2017. Fatal occupational injuries involving confined spaces, 2011-2018 Year 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 Fatal work injuries 120 88 112 116…...

The company is a fuel filtration and tank cleaning company. In December 2014, an employee was found unresponsive and later died from gasoline inhalation while cleaning tanks at a construction site in Daytona Beach, Florida. Following the incident, OSHA conducted an inspection and issued an 11- item serious citation for violations of 29 C.F.R. §…...

On November 19, 2019, an employee was unloading his semi-truck tanker of flour and hooked up a blower hose that is powered from the truck’s transmission. The employee climbed to the top of the tanker while trying to get a better seal and opened the hatch before entering. Emergency Services was contacted and removed the…...

At 2:00 p.m. on November 28, 2017, Employee #1 and a coworker were looking for drainage valves at a mine water treatment pond facility. Employee #1 went down a ladder into a manhole next to one of the ponds to look for the valve. Employee#1 fell off of the ladder as soon as his head…...

In 2014, Part XI – Confined Spaces was identified as a priority for review by the Labour Program’s Occupational Health and Safety Advisory Committee (OHSAC). The OHSAC made up of representatives from the Labour Program and employee and employer groups, conducted an in-depth review of Part XI between 2014 and 2017. The proposed changes are…...

OSHA has cited a container cleaning business for exposing employees to confined space hazards after two employees were fatally overcome by fumes while cleaning a tank trailer. The company faces $497,920 in penalties. OSHA investigators determined that one employee became unresponsive after entering the trailer’s confined space. After a non-entry retrieval system used to rescue…...

Over the past several years, I have attempted to convince the SAFTENG members that an Evaporative Condenser in an Ammonia refrigeration process is indeed a Permit-Required Confined Space.  Earlier this year, the IIAR published one of my articles on this topic, hoping to educate the industry about this life safety topic.  I think we have…...