The short answer is YES.  This can be a hotly contested debate as there are both paid and volunteer departments that believe they are somehow exempt from basic safety programs.  In the state of Ohio (OH) professional firefighters are NOT covered by OSHA since OH is a federal OSHA plan; and volunteers do not fall under OSHA.  So in respect to complying with OSHA, both groups are correct.  But in many...

A facility that produces ultra pasteurized milk products failed to immediately notify federal and state emergency authorities of a chlorine gas release in 2012 at a milk facility in Portland, Oregon. By law, facilities are required to report hazardous releases to state and federal emergency response authorities in a timely manner. Eight employees, a truck driver, two contractors and a person who was...

In a draft report released to the public today, the U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) proposes recommendations for substantial changes to the way refineries are regulated in California. Entitled “Regulatory Report: Chevron Richmond Refinery Pipe Rupture and Fire,” the CSB draft calls on California to replace the current patchwork of largely reactive and activity-based regulations with a...

  MANY THANKS to my NEWEST Partner in Safety 2013 Fatality Tracker Electrical 32 (2012 = 68) (2011 = 81) (2010 = 90) (2009 = 100) Forklift/Manlift 62 (2012 = 52) (2011 = 84) (2010 = 110) (2009 = 88) Mining* 87 (2012 = 92*)  (2011 = 248) (2010 = 480) (2009 = 586) *no longer includes China accidents Explosions 194 (2012 = 241) (2011 = 218) (2010 = 246) (2009 = 302) Cranes 51 (2012 = 52) (2011...

WARNING!  This video may be upsetting to some viewers.  Viewer discretion is advised. Yet another forklift accident caused by the operator driving forward with a load (i.e. OBSCURED VIEW)!  

Here are a couple of photos of some public Christmas decorations that caught me as an “oh no” moment. Someone has wrapped the string of lights fuses with aluminum foil to bypass or replace the built in fuses. Check all cords and never cheat a safety device.  Share the word. Do not bypass safety at work, at home, or in the community.

For those of us living the process safety world, we will find this report laughable! By that I mean, we have to evaluate our contractor’s safety performance before hiring them to work in, on or adjacent to our covered processes, but apparently the government does not see the value in evaluating the contractors it hires! Each year, the United States pays out over $500 billion in taxpayer dollars...

Plant was cited for six process safety management standard violations, including one willful, after an explosion in June killed two workers and injured 80 people. A willful violation was cited for failing to develop clear, written procedures for how to change and put idle pressure vessels into service. The five (5) serious and one (1) willful violations include: … HomeRead More »

OSHA has cited a manufacturer of polystyrene foam core board for willful, repeat and serious safety violations. The business faces a total of $105,490 in proposed penalties following two inspections by OSHA’s Hartford Area Office. The first inspection, begun on May 31, identified several deficiencies in the plant’s process safety management program involving the chemical isopentane, a flammable...

OSHA has cited an industrial gas manufacturer for 19 serious safety violations following an inspection at its repackaging facility. The inspection began in May under OSHA’s national emphasis program for process safety management for covered chemical facilities. Proposed fines total $49,200. Here is a breakdown of the actual citations: … HomeRead More »

Many do not realize I am on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, etc.  I am friends with several OSHA personnel (active and retired), CSB personnel (active and retired), etc. and we have some really nice discussions on-line about safety and accidents.  One of my safety friends, John Newquist, Retired Assistant Regional Administrator OSHA Region V, out this together after we had seen a spike...

ASME has introduced a new Certification Mark with the 2011 Addenda to the Code. All new applicants receive the Certification Mark this year. Until December 31, 2012, the Code Symbol Stamps may still be used, but will be replaced by the new Certification Mark together with the designator letter “U”, “S”, “PP”, etc. As of January 1st,  2013 the ASME Code Symbol...