The Department of Labor & Industries (L&I), also known as WA-OSHA, has cited a landscaping business for multiple safety violations related to the death of a worker, 19, last July. He was killed by a rotating auger while working inside the hopper of a bark-blower truck. The company has been cited for two willful and 14 serious violations, with penalties totaling $199,000. The employer has also been identified as a severe violator and will be subject to follow-up inspections to determine if the conditions still exist in the future. Following the July incident, L&I issued a bark and mulch-blower hazard alert to warn others in the landscaping business of the danger of working in hoppers while the equipment is running. The L&I investigation found workers were regularly assigned to clear jams in the bark-blower truck hoppers while the hoppers were operating. This exposed them to three very hazardous elements: a floor conveyor belt, two rotating-screw conveyors (angled augers) and a rotating stir rod. Exposure to any of these parts of the equipment could potentially result in entanglement, causing severe crushing injuries or death. The employer was cited for two willful violations:
- for not ensuring lockout/tagout procedures were regularly used; it carries a penalty of $56,000
- for not training the employees in the proper use of those critical procedures; it carries a penalty of $52,000
Additionally, working in the hopper of bark-blower trucks exposed workers to “confined space” hazards. Twelve of the serious violations cited were for failure to implement safe work practices when entering a permit-required confined space. Two other serious violations were cited for not having an effective accident prevention program and for failure to document lockout/tagout procedures. Each of these violations carries a $6,500 penalty.
Here is a breakdown of the citations:
