Facility Safety

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Workers at a Fiabila USA Inc. facility in Mine Hill, New Jersey were exposed to chemical hazards and vapors from flammable liquids along with other workers, an OSHA investigation has determined.

One would expect subzero temperatures in the Arctic Circle and understand the need for a coat, but employees working in a 40-degree-below-zero Fahrenheit freezer at Birds Eye Foods Inc. in Darien were left in the cold. An investigation by OSHA found that the company expected employees to work in extreme temperatures without properly insulated personal protective equipment*.

The widow of an Oswego County New York man is suing a water treatment plant and a construction company in his death in an explosion at the village's wastewater treatment facility last year. Kelly claims the death of her husband, Richard C. Whitney Jr., was a result of the township plant and M. Hubbard Construction Inc. not providing a safe work environment.

The Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Station disaster in March 2011 is still a “hot” story more than three years after the incident. The operating company TEPCO (Tokyo Electric Power Co.) is cleaning up the site and continues to battle problems with tons of contaminated water being stored at Fukushima.

A 54-year-old worker at a Greeley, Colorado was fatally injured in June, 2014 when his hair and arm were caught in an unguarded conveyor system. His employer, JBS USA LLC, failed to protect workers from moving machine parts by properly guarding or de-energizing the equipment, an inspection by OSHA found.

Hazardous chemicals known to cause severe burns, respiratory and reproductive health issues leaked out of a tanker truck in May 2014, which exposed workers at E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co., Chamber Works in Deepwater, to health risks. A complaint filed with OSHA prompted an inspection of the company under the agency's National Emphasis Program on Chemical Process Safety.

A 21-year-old machine operator was killed at Ventra Belvidere LLC while reaching into a machine to align parts made for Chrysler vehicles. Following an investigation into the June 10, 2014 incident, OSHA, OSHA cited the Belvidere, Illinois facility for one willful and four serious safety violations for exposing workers to dangerous machinery and other hazards.

A 44-year-old machine operator suffered severe injuries when a part of his face was caught in a power press he operated at Parker Hannifin Corp.'s Lewisburg, Ohio, plant. Following an investigation, OSHA  issued one repeat citation and two serious safety violations for exposing the worker to machinery operating parts with inadequate safeguards.

As you deck your halls this holiday season, make sure to keep fire safety in mind. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), home candle and decoration fires peak in December. Nearly half of all holiday decoration fires occur because the decorations are placed too close to a heat source, with two out of every five home decoration fires started by candles.

Written Testimony Submitted by U.S. Chemical Safety Board Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso to the Joint Committee: Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works and the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions hearing entitled, "Oversight of the Implementation of the President’s Executive Order on Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security.”