Worker dies inside hopper railcar (Engulment by fertilizer)

At 8:45 p.m. on May 7, 2021, an employee and his coworkers were unloading a fertilizer hopper railcar when the Urea got stuck. They were using a compressor-driven vibrator on each side of the car as well as having employees hit the outside of the car with hammers. The employee and a coworker got up on the car to open the hatch and see if they could dislodge the clumped materials. The employee entered the car to poke the material with rebar when the material dislodged and engulfed him. T he employee died of asphyxiation.

Violation Summary
  Serious Willful Repeat Other Total
Initial Violations 1       1
Current Violations 1       1
Initial Penalty $5,803 $0 $0 $0 $5,803
Current Penalty $5,803 $0 $0 $0 $5,803

 

Violation Items
# ID Type Standard Issuance Abate Curr$ Init$ Contest LastEvent
1. 01001 Serious 19100146 C03 09/23/2021 10/20/2021 $5,803 $5,803   Z – Issued

 

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