At approximately 4:00 a.m. on March 29, 2020, an employee was installing a blind on a flange on a reactor. Then, the probe stem fell inside of the reactor, and the employee tried to fish it out. Using a ladder, the employee went inside the reactor that was NOT cleared for entry because the reactor still contained vinyl chlorine. Halfway down the ladder, the employee became dizzy and fell to the bottom of the reactor hitting his head on the agitator inside of the vessel. The employee was killed.
PLEASE NOTE: falls into or within a CS is NOT a hazard which would make a CS a PRCS. The employer was NOT cited for the actual fall, but rather PRCS and VC standards.
