OSHA cited the company for 12 serious and one repeat violation after an inspection identified two incidents of anhydrous ammonia release, an absence of fall protection, the employer's failure to implement an emergency response plan, and other workplace hazards.
Workers are at risk of severe injury and death during machine maintenance and servicing if proper lockout/tagout procedures are not followed.
Lord Young's report proposed that employers have to report injuries only if they cause seven days of lost time, rather than the current three. The society says this is a bad idea.
"This case is a stark example of the devastating consequences to workers when adequate machine guarding is absent," said Edward Jerome, OSHA's area director in Albany.
The seventh annual Take a Stand Day asks companies to request a consultative visit now, promising there will be no citations or fine for participating workplaces.
The injured worker suffered third degree burns to his neck, chest and arms, and second degree burns to the face as a result of an arc flash that occurred when a transformer was unexpectedly energized by another worker.
OSHA proposed $82,700 in penalties for the violations following its inspection, which was conducted based on high injury and illness rates reported at the site.
The safety inspection found 10 serious and five repeat safety violations. A health investigation yielding nine serious violations was opened Nov. 15, 2010, based on a referral from the safety inspection.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission unanimously approved (5-0) a new mandatory standard to improve the safety of toddler beds. The new federal standard builds upon the ASTM voluntary standard for toddler beds (F1821-09) and adds additional protections to prevent injuries to children.
The serious violations include failing to maintain the structural integrity of pipe hangers and pipe support rods and report a leak in a critical 4-inch valve at the ammonia storage tank.
The agency is offering a webcast of the April 20 event, which is part of its outreach to help food facilities and entities meet the requirements of the Food Safety Modernization Act.
The Food and Drug Administration cleared the SpectraShield 9500 N95 surgical respirator, a device that kills 99.99 percent of three different kinds of bacteria when exposed to its outer surface. The single-use, N95 surgical respirator is designed for use in health care settings by health care personnel to protect against microorganisms, body fluids, and particulate material.
In addition to the combustible dust hazards, among 32 serious violations cited are failing to provide a lockout/tagout system to control the release of hazardous energy, ensure exits were unblocked, and protect employees from electrical and chemical hazards.
OSHA’s inspection, which began Oct. 4, 2010, found serious violations including the company’s failure to dike a fuel tank, ensure the bi-directional alarm on a powered industrial truck was not defective, and examine industrial trucks before they were put in service.
The coordinated enforcement strike force issued out-of-service violation citations to 156 drivers and 262 vehicles.
FAA is taking this action after an incident at Reno-Tahoe International Airport when a controller fell asleep while a medical flight carrying an ill patient was trying to land.
And the panel's reasoning in the April 7 decision offers support for the hearing protection reinterpretation OSHA recently withdrew.
They are the first to receive full enforcement action until this section of the Mine Act, according to MSHA, which said its reinspections of 10 mines earlier this year found only these two had increased S&S violation rates.
OSHA initiated an inspection on Oct. 21, 2011, in response to a complaint alleging that the employer had not abated safety and health violations cited on July 14, 2010.