This ONLY applies to Michigan workplaces, but it was such a weird way to enforce the PRCS standard that I thought it was worth sharing. Keep in mind that more than 50% of PRCS deaths are “would-be rescuers.” Rescue Operations MIOSHA has no authority to direct rescue operations. This is the responsibility of the employer…...
MI-OSHA enforcement position on PRCS rescue attempts Read More »
OSHA’s Construction Standard for PRCSs specifies several information collection requirements. The following sections describe who uses the information collected under each requirement and how they use it. Employers and employees would use these information collection requirements to identify a confined space at a construction worksite. The purpose of the information would permit employers and employees…...
OSHA’s Construction Standard for PRCSs information collection requirements Read More »
A tank cleaning company again chose to disregard federal safety standards that may have protected their employees from hazardous working conditions and prevented another employee from suffering a fatal injury. In December 2023, just two days before Christmas, the wife and son of an employee at the company grew concerned when he didn’t return after…...
OSHA issues REPEAT PRCS Citations @ Tank Truck Cleaning facility ($810K) Read More »
On December 4, 2023, at 11:37 a.m., an employee was working as a contractor performing repairs at a bulk petroleum storage facility. The employee was attempting to perform repair work inside a tank that had previously contained oil. The employee was using methylene chloride to degrease the floor inside the tank…. Membership Required You must...
Employee cleaning tank dies after chemically (CH2Cl2) asphyxiated Read More »
On December 23, 2023, at 12:07 p.m., an employee working as an equipment washer for a contract tank service was cleaning a bulk liquid waste tank that had contained acetic acid. The employee was found unresponsive inside the tanker. The employee was transported to the emergency room and was pronounced dead eleven minutes after arrival…....
Employee dies from CO exposure while cleaning bulk liquid tank Read More »
On May 2, 2023, an employee working for a gas station and convenience store arrived to talk to a coworker (the employer) about payment for the building he leases. The employee asked the coworker if he could help him apply a fuel tank liner. The employee climbed inside the tank and plugged in his own…...
FATAL flashfire in gasoline storage tank (Flammable atm) Read More »
One of the top questions I get via SAFTENG and in my PRCS or Hazardous Atmospheres training courses is… Why did OSHA use 10% LEL to define a hazardous atmosphere? There is an official and logical reason, both of which should be understood. First, the “official” reason:… Membership Required You must be a member to...
Why does OSHA use 10% LEL to define a HAZ ATM within a PRCS? Read More »
Source: VnExpress/Anh Phu Seven (7) workers were killed, and three (3) others were injured while conducting periodic maintenance on one of the plant’s kilns when the incident occurred. When the workers entered the rotary kiln to start the repair work, the kiln unexpectedly restarted. Replacing the eroded kiln plates is done every 5-7…...
PRCS incident kills 7, injures 3 @ Cement Plant (LOTO Failure – 2 Videos) Read More »
Both OSHA PRCS standards define and quantify a Hazardous Atmosphere in terms of combustible dust using the distance one can see through the dust cloud… Hazardous atmosphere means an atmosphere that may expose employees to the risk of death, incapacitation, impairment of ability to self-rescue (that is, escape unaided from a permit space), injury, or…...
Combustible Dust and entry into Permit-Required Confined Spaces (PRCS) Read More »
This is a crazy case! The mill hired a contractor to build scaffolding inside one of its Chlorine Dioxide (CLO2) tanks. The mill prepped the tank and even performed the initial air sampling of the space. Turned it over to one of the scaffolding contractor employees who would be the attendant for the entry. Three…...
Appeals Court sides with Paper Mill over Confined Space incident Read More »
As he had many other days, the morning shift welder arrived at 5 a.m. to work on Aug. 28, 2023. Tasked with doing some fabrication work in a 4-foot by 8-foot space in a ship’s hull, the employee began work unaware that fatal suffocation would soon end his life. Less than two hours after entering…...
At 5:00 p.m. on September 20, 2023, an employee entered an oil well production tank to replace a leaking valve. The employee became unconscious when he entered the confined space. The employee died of asphyxiation in the hazardous atmosphere…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready a member? Log...
PRCS Fatality (O2 Deficiency) Read More »
