Risk Management


Thermal Fatigue Probable Cause of Enterprise Products Explosion: CSB

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board released its final report on the June 27, 2016, explosion and fire at the Enterprise Products Pascagoula Gas Plant in Pascagoula, Miss., with recommendations to two trade associations to include information on the potential for minor leaks and catastrophic failure of brazed aluminum heat exchangers.

Legislators Introduce Transit Worker and Pedestrian Protection Act

The bill would require U.S. transit-rail agencies to develop a rail operations worker assault risk reduction program within the next two years. Agencies would be required to conduct a risk analysis of assaults on rail employees, cooperate with labor representatives to develop their plans, and implement a plan to mitigate rail worker assaults.

NRC Holding Public Meeting Feb. 13 on Seabrook License Extension

The Massachusetts congressional delegation, U.S. Sens. Edward J. Markey, D-Mass., and Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., and Congressman Seth Moulton, had called on the NRC to hear community concerns and address ongoing safety issues before renewing or amending the license for the plant.

DOJ Awards Grant to Aid Victims of Las Vegas Mass Shooting

The agency previously awarded a grant of more than $16 million to the state of Nevada to support these services. It is awarding $8.3 million to the California Victim Compensation Board to help meet critical long-term needs of victims of the 2017 mass shooting, compensating them for financial losses and medical expenses and providing services to victims and first responders.

PG&E, Other California Utilities File 2019 Wildfire Mitigation Plans

More than half of PG&E's 70,000-square-mile service area is in extreme or elevated fire-threat areas. The plan includes the expansion of PG&E's Public Safety Power Shutoff program to include all electric lines that pass through high fire-threat areas, both transmission and distribution.

Safety Precautions Issued for Lake Berryessa Visitors

The federal Bureau of Reclamation's Lake Berryessa office in Napa, Calif., is asking visitors to take extra caution when in or around the lake this winter. The lake is high due to recent storms, and recent wildfires have brought more sediment and downed trees into the lake.

Ohio BWC Awards Safety Grants to 35 Employers

Thirty-five employers will share $891,979 in grants from the Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation to purchase equipment designed to substantially reduce or eliminate workplace injuries and illnesses, the agency announced Jan. 29.

OSHA Joins Alliance Focused on Safe Handling of Fertilizers

Announced Feb. 4, the alliance already has completed its first project: a training video showing a mock agricultural retail facility inspection. The video was filmed at the ResponsibleAg training facility in Owensboro, Ky.



Ohio Governor Signs Domestic Violence Executive Order

His order directs all state agencies, boards, and commissions to take necessary corrective actions, up to and including termination, when an employee commits or threatens to commit domestic violence on state property, at state-sponsored events, or when using state resources; and to contact law enforcement if an incident occurs.

Cal/OSHA Reminds Employers to Post 2018 Injury and Illness Summaries

Summaries of work-related injuries and illnesses must be posted each year from February 1 through April 30, even if no workplace injuries occurred during the prior year.

Report Finds Construction Fatalities Continue to Increase in New York State

In the "Deadly Skyline: An Annual Report on Construction Fatalities in New York State" report, researchers found that while New York State has seen an increase in fatalities related to construction, construction fatality rates in New York City construction continue to decrease.

Solid Waste Industry Experienced Unprecedented Increase in Fatal Incidents in January 2019

"The surge in fatal incidents involving solid waste personnel and vehicles in January is unprecedented in my 20-plus years in the industry and is unacceptable," said David Biderman, executive director and CEO of SWANA.

Active Shooter Exercise Set in Key West

The purpose of the Feb. 1 exercise is to test multiple agencies' response policies, plans, and procedures to an active shooter incident within the maritime domain.

Fort Worth Hospital's CEO Criticizes Elevator Contractor

An employee was seriously injured Jan. 20 in one of John Peter Smith Hospital’s elevators. President and CEO Robert Earley’s Jan. 29 letter to a ThyssenKrupp Elevator Corporation regional president says seven of the hospital’s elevators were out of service on Jan. 25.

PG&E Files for Bankruptcy Protection

"Through this process, we will prioritize what matters most to our customers and the communities we serve – safety and reliability. We believe that this process will make sure that we have sufficient liquidity to serve our customers and support our operations and obligations," said PG&E Corporation Interim CEO John R. Simon.

IAEA Team Completes Safety Review at Two Spanish Nuclear Plants

The 12-member team began its review began Jan. 15, focusing on aspects essential to the safe long-term operation of Units 1 and 2 at Ascó and Unit 2 at Vandellós, which respectively went into commercial operation in 1984, 1986, and 1988.

Michigan Agency Conducting Snowmobile Patrols

During the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend alone, five snowmobilers died in the state. So far this winter, nine snowmobilers have died in Michigan.

Fire damage to the lower aft cargo compartment of the Boeing 737-700 was contained to an area about 24 inches by 24 inches in size, according to the Transportation Safety Board of Canada

Report Highlights Threat of Lithium-Ion Batteries in Checked Bags

The Transportation Safety Board of Canada's investigative report on a baggage compartment fire during a WestJet flight in June 2018 says a damaged battery inside a passenger's bag triggered it.

Research Shows Waste Collection Systems Contribute to Musculoskeletal Issues for UK Workers

The research, published in the latest edition of IOSH's Policy and Practice in Health and Safety Journal, investigated musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) in workers as a result of different systems used for recycling and waste collection.

Sphera Solutions Acquires Petrotechnics

Petrotechnics, a provider of operational risk software for hazardous industries such as oil & gas, railroads, and chemicals, is based in Aberdeen, Scotland.

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