The new alliance between OSHA's Fort Lauderdale Area Office and NUCA of South Florida will focus on cave-in protection, silica, heat stress, and atmospheric hazards associated with confined spaces.
One of the highlights is a June 12 panel discussion on how increased use and legalization of marijuana affect companies' efforts to maintain drug-free workplaces.
"The violations identified exposed employees to serious and potentially life-threatening injuries," said OSHA Syracuse Area Director Jeffrey Prebish. "Employers can minimize workplace dangers by conducting required job hazard analyses."
All hazards must be identified before entry to the space and listed on the permit.
WorkSafeBC has posted a new guide, posters, and a video addressing hazards specific to craft-brewing and distilling processes, including carbon dioxide and confined spaces.
Carbon monoxide overexposure symptoms can include headaches, dizziness, drowsiness, nausea, vomiting, or tightness across the chest. Severe overexposure can lead to neurological damage, coma, and death.
OSHA's inspectors determined that the company exposed employees to a hazardous atmosphere, failed to train employees on the health hazards of hydrogen sulfide, and did not drain water from the trench.
Fatal falls were at their highest level in the 26-year history of the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) and accounted for 887 workers' deaths. BLS also reported that fatal occupational injuries involving confined spaces rose 15 percent to 166 in 2017 from 144 in 2016.
Controlling the risks is done by applying the hierarchy of controls: elimination, substitution, engineering controls (such as ventilation systems to remove welding fume), administrative controls, and finally, PPE.
OH&S congratulated winners of the tenth annual contest during the 2018 National Safety Council Congress & Expo in Houston.
It's more than a best practice—it is essential to test the air prior to and during entry, as OSHA requires.
Given the statistics on confined space deaths, shouldn't rescuers know about atmospheric conditions before entering and attempting rescue? And shouldn't the attendant know about the entrants' readings in real time anyway?
The agency has placed the contractor in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program. "Electrocution is one of the leading causes of death in the construction industry," said OSHA Pittsburgh Area Office Director Christopher Robinson. "Complying with OSHA safety and health standards is not optional. Employers are required to take necessary precautions to prevent tragedies such as this."
The MIOSHA CET Grant Program funds additional options for health and safety education and training for employers and employees, focusing particularly on hazard recognition and prevention for high hazard industries.
OSHA’S NEP will increase education and enforcement, and each area OSHA office will work on outreach programs.
Houston’s George R. Brown Convention Center is the site for this year's NSC Congress & Expo.
The reality is permit required confined spaces are still the leading cause of multiple fatalities in the workplace.
Three employees were killed and two others critically injured following an explosion aboard a towboat in Calvert City, Ky., on Jan. 19, 2018. The five contractors collectively received 55 violations with proposed penalties totaling $795,254.
An AIHce EXP 2018 session presenter analyzed a 2012 fatality inside a sewer valve vault that was 18 feet, 6 inches deep.
Remote work, turbine height, limited access, and turbine manufacturer variables are challenges addressed in ANSI/ASSE A10.21, which establishes requirements for job site work and equipment. Publication of the new standard is expected in June 2018.