Permit Required Confined Spaces

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Test the atmosphere before entering a confined space. It can make the difference between life and death…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready a member? Log in here...

On October 2, 2007, five people were killed and three others injured when a fire erupted 1,000 feet underground in a tunnel at Xcel Energy Company’s hydroelectric power plant in Georgetown, Colorado, located approximately 45 miles west of Denver. This CSB safety video explains how the accident occurred…. Membership Required You must be a member...

Most of us know that OSHA requires us to retain our canceled PRCS Entry permits for one year to be able to do our annual review of our program, which is also an OSHA requirement.  However, and this is a HUGE “however,”…if the permit’s air monitoring section shows there was any exposure to a contaminant,…...

All too often, when doing a CS entry or rescue course, we are surprised by the number of entry supervisors who do not understand the major limitation of a combustible gas meter… the LEL Correction Factor. EVERY meter in use today will have this limitation! This is how it works…… Membership Required You must be...

We continue to find businesses misunderstanding the need and requirement for “non-entry rescue” requirements found in 1910.146(k)(3). Even when a business has its own in-house CS rescue team, the rule is that for EVERY entry into a Permit-Required Confined Space, non-entry rescue capabilities found in 1910.146(k)(3)(i) & 1910.146(k)(3)(ii). There are ONLY two exceptions to this…...

Workers were injured while vacuuming explosive dust inside a PRCS to clean out a natural gas processing unit…. Membership Required You must be a member to access this content.View Membership LevelsAlready a member? Log in here...

First, let me say this upfront if your facility has not evaluated your local fire department’s rescue capabilities in the past 2-3 years, I STRONGLY ENCOURAGE it to do so ASAP.  With the drastic swing in the economy and many cities on the brink of bankruptcy, I know of at least 50 FDs that have…...

When do I have to have a Confined Space rescue team? I get this question almost monthly, and it worries me that so many facilities struggle with such a critical analysis. It is not easy, but it could be a matter of life or death and deserves some explanation. In this post, I will walk…...

Several recent accidents with fatal outcomes occurring during the discharge of logs and wood chips from ships in Swedish ports indicate the need to understand better the atmospheric conditions in holds and connecting stairways. The principal aim of the present study was to assess the air levels of oxygen and toxic gases in confined spaces…...

A post I made on another board regarding a discussion about what makes an atm a hazardous atm… just exceeding a PEL does not make the atm hazardous under the PRCS std.  You are correct that OSHA has stated an atmosphere that contains a substance at a concentration exceeding a permissible exposure limit intended solely…...

It appears we may be blending 1910.146(c)(5) and (c)(7) in our attempt to reclassify a PRCS to a non-permit status.  We must follow (c)(7) in our reclassification efforts.  It does sound as if our PRCS may be able to be reclassified; however, I am not familiar with the type of space or specific situation.  OSHA…...