Risk Management


The FAA Safety Team Safety Stand Down, a safety and education initiative to improve general aviation safety, be launched at the 36th annual SUN n FUN International Fly-In & Expo.

FAA Renames GA Magazine, Readies Stand Down

The Safety Stand Down, an educational initiative to improve general aviation safety, will be launched at the 36th annual SUN 'n FUN International Fly-In & Expo, April 13-18 in Lakeland, Fla.

Railroad Company to Pay $4 Million for Chlorine Spill

The settlement addresses the Jan. 6, 2005, Norfolk Southern train derailment in Graniteville, S.C., that resulted in the death of nine people from chlorine exposure, hundreds of people seeking medical care due to respiratory distress, and the evacuation of more than 5,000 people living and working within a 1-mile radius of the release area.

OSHA Sends Notice to 15,000 High-Injury Workplaces

"Employers whose businesses have injury and illness rates this high need to take immediate steps to protect their workers," said OSHA head Dr. David Michaels.

Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., became District Attorney of New York County on Jan. 1, 2010.

NY Crane Collapse Defendants Plead Not Guilty

DA Cyrus R. Vance Jr. announced multiple manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide counts on Monday in connection with the May 30, 2008, collapse of a tower crane in Manhattan. Defendants James Lomma and Tibor Varganyi entered not guilty pleas today.

FAA Official Receives Life Achievement Award for Runway Safety Contributions

Rick Marinelli joined FAA in 1992 and now serves as manager of its Airport Engineering Division, responsible for programs relating to runway and taxiway geometry, airport airspace analysis, airport winter operations, design standards for airport facilities and equipment, airport pavements, airport lighting and electrical systems, and airport safety data.

CSB Issues Safety Bulletin on Welding, Hot Work Hazards

“Hot work around flammable gas or vapor is one of the most common causes of worker deaths that we see at the Chemical Safety Board,” said CSB Board Member William B. Wark.

OSHA Orders Technology Firm to Rehire Whistleblower, Pay Him $600K

The agency's investigation substantiated the employee's complaint that his job duties were systematically removed and his paychecks were delayed and ultimately stopped after he questioned the accuracy of several statements made in the company's SEC filings.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission member Dale Klein

NRC Commissioner Wants 'More Balanced' Security Approach

Pressure on the industry to achieve a zero risk level is wrongheaded because it is not attainable in the real world, Dale Klein, a Nuclear Regulatory Commission member, told attendees Friday in Raleigh, N.C., at the Grand Challenge Summit 2010.



Fingersticks as part of health screenings are increasingly common

Study Examines Employer Benefits, Drawbacks of Blood-Drawing Methods

"One may think that fingersticks are selected more frequently because they cost less; however, that isn't necessarily true," says white paper author Richard Penington. "Likewise, some believe that the venous blood draw gives results that are more accurate because the blood is sent to a lab for testing. That's also not necessarily true."

Another Big Fine, $3,042,000, Issued to BP

Under a pair of 50/50 joint ventures with Husky Energy, BP operates the 91-year old Toledo Refinery near Toledo, Ohio, that processes crude from Canadian oil sands into gasoline and other products.

The 2010 Patient Safety Awareness Week is focused on "Healthy Conversations for Safer Healthcare."

Hospitals Focused on Patient Safety This Week

This year's Patient Safety Awareness Week has the tagline "Let's Talk: Healthy Conversations for Safer Healthcare."

Fatal Injury Mapping Module Unveiled by CDC

The module allows users to create customized, color-coded maps of injury-related death rates throughout the United States. It defines injury-related deaths according to intent (e.g., unintentional, homicide, suicide) and mechanism of injury (e.g., motor-vehicle traffic, fall, fire or burn, poisoning, cut).

States Still Improving Work Zone Scores

The 2009 scores on FHWA's Work Zone Mobility and Safety Self Assessment tool are the highest yet, indicating the state departments continue to make progress on their oversight and management.

The bill presumes that HIV for a firefighter or EMS worker is work-related.

NIOSH Conducting Study of Firefighting's Cancer Risk

The multi-year, records-based study will include about 18,000 current and retired career firefighters. The findings will aid the International Agency for Research on Cancer's review of the carcinogenicity of firefighting.

USDA Launches Initiative to Improve Mississippi River Water Quality

Among the most significant challenges facing the river is the runoff of excess nutrients from manure and commercial fertilizer, specifically nitrogen and phosphorus.

Safety Issues Lead Among IAFC's On Scene Readers

The Fairfax, Va.-based International Association of Fire Chiefs is conducting an online survey to find out what readers of the newsletter want it to cover.

EPA Seeks Comments on Boats' 'Gray Water' Discharges

At issue is the potential negative impact on water quality from incidental discharges such as deck run-off and gray water from fishing vessels, tugboats, water taxis, tour boats, fire boats, and similar vessels less than 79 feet.

Chris Patton, CSP, president of ASSE

ASSE, AIHA Offer Creative Ideas

The March 4 "OSHA Listens" meeting did not lack for out-of-the-box thinking. What OSHA does with the input from ASSE President Chris Patton and others is the crucial part, of course.

New Study Details Ways to Avoid Combustible-Cloud Explosions

Among the products considered most likely to lead to the danger of an explosion or fire are zinc and other metallic powders, wheat flour and other food products, and certain plastics and resins. In all of these cases, if unprotected, normal processing steps can produce enough static electricity to ignite a dust cloud.

The HSE alert includes this photograph, which shows the failed lift on the right.

Vehicle Lift's Failure Prompts HSE Alert

A "catastrophic failure" of a 10-year-old short-bed vehicle lift used in a car repair shop causes HSE to recommend inspection of hundreds of lifts nationwide. Fortunately, no one was injured in the incident.

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