We hear a lot of safety professionals talking about bonding and grounding and this safety function is by far the most common means of controlling static electricity during the transfer of flammable liquids; however, it is also very often the cause of flash fires because facilities either do not fully understand or fail to manage the systems properly (e.g. poor connections, loss of continuity due to...

MANY THANKS to my NEW & RENEWING “Partners in Safety”for their support!         City of Boise, ID since 2007, Haynes since 2005, Air Products since 2009, Benjamin Moore Paints since 2011 2011 Fatality Tracker Electrical 78 (2010 = 90) (2009 = 100) Forklift/Manlift Mobile Equipment  84 (2010 = 110) (2009=88) Mining 236 (2010 = 480) (2009...

In fire experiments conducted in uniformly furnished, but vacant Chicago-area townhouses, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) researchers uncovered temperature and heat-flow conditions that can seriously damage facepiece lenses on standard firefighter breathing equipment, a potential contributing factor for first-responder fatalities and injuries. … HomeRead More »...

  The United States Coast Guard strongly urges mariners and boaters alike to check their Mustang Survival PFDs. Mustang Survival is voluntarily recalling all model number MD2010 and MD2012 inflatable Personal Flotation Devices (PFD’s) sold in the United States during 2011. To determine if you are impacted by this recall please reference the images below: … HomeRead More...

The next time you go to your friendly neighbor appliance store to by your new refrigerator or freezer, BE SURE to ask what type of refrigerant it uses.  You may be very surprised in what you hear!!   The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has added three hydrocarbons as acceptable alternatives in household and small commercial refrigerators and freezers through EPA’s Significant...

As many of you know I have written extensively about flammable liquids safety, a true passion of mine within the safety field.  But there is this SMALL detail that too many facilities are overlooking, but relying on in a very BIG way.  Secondary Containment, or a “dike” as it is often called.  Here are just some quick notes for those with secondary containment to consider…...

 

MANY THANKS to my NEW & RENEWING “Partners in Safety”for their support!         City of Boise, ID since 2007, Haynes since 2005, Air Products since 2009, Benjamin Moore Paints since 2011 2011 Fatality Tracker Electrical 77 (2010 = 90) (2009 = 100) Forklift/Manlift Mobile Equipment  83 (2010 = 110) (2009=88) Mining 236 (2010 = 480) (2009...

The National Safety Council estimates a worker injury with NO lost-time costs $7,000 on average. A company must sell extra product to cover the accident costs. For example, if a company has an accident that costs $5,000 and operates with a profit margin of 3%, then $167,000 in additional sales are needed to make up what was lost on this one accident. … HomeRead More »

Certain coating removers containing methylene chloride are widely used in the bathtub refinishing industry to prepare tubs for a new finish.  Since 2006 there have been three deaths in Michigan in this industry involving methylene chloride. This week the Michigan Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (MIFACE) program released a hazard alert and an investigative report about this hazardous...

A serious risk has been identified by an EU member state where use of the mobile phone “Expert XP-Ex-1” in potentially explosive atmospheres could lead to possible ignition danger. The mobile phone in question is manufactured by “Experts Intrinsic Safety Specialists, Groningsewet 7, 2994 LC Barendrecht, Netherlands”. … HomeRead More »