The company also received one repeat citation, which alone had a proposed $25,000 fine, for not developing and implementing specific hazardous energy control procedures for all machinery at the plant. It was cited for a similar hazard in February 2007.
"There can be no delay in exiting a workplace during a fire or other emergency when the difference between escape and injury or death can be measured in seconds," said Kay Gee, OSHA's acting area director in Manhattan.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) has released a new nine-minute computer animated safety video depicting a tragic reactive chemical accident that devastated T2 Laboratories in Jacksonville, Fla.
The site's lack of eyewash or shower stations near where employees were exposed to corrosive materials were among the 10 serious health violations for which OSHA cited the Georgia company.
Nine Ohio mine rescue teams will be assigned the same emergency problem and will be evaluated by state and federal mine inspectors on their procedures and speed. Two courses will run simultaneously and teams will be sequestered until it is their turn to compete.
Award recipients will each receive $10,000 and have an opportunity to meet and network with national disability leaders at the AAPD Leadership Gala in Washington, D.C., in March. U.S. residents with any type of disability are eligible to apply.
In FY 2008, federal agencies paid out a total of more than $50 million in monetary benefits to complainants (including appellate decisions), according to EEOC's annual tally.
Under the settlement, the city will improve its sewer system to minimize, and in many cases, eliminate overflows of sewage combined with stormwater overflows into the river at a cost likely between $100 and $150 million. The city has to have a comprehensive plan in place by calendar year 2020 or 2025, depending on the city's financial health.
During a 2007 inspection, EPA staff found acetone and toluene being stored improperly at the facility. The agency noted that exposure to such solvents can affect breathing and cause vomiting.
The serious violations OSHA unearthed related to inadequate process safety management of highly hazardous chemicals, lack of emergency preparedness and response procedures, and poor respiratory protection for workers.
With more participation this year than ever before, more than 100 radio stations in some 20 states are planning to help raise awareness of mesothelioma by playing a Warren Zevon song followed by a 20-second segment about the incurable disease on Saturday, Sept. 26.
At a public meeting in Jacksonville, CSB investigators will present their final report on the batch reactor explosion that killed four workers and injured 32 people Dec. 19, 2007.
The settlement is related to a release at the company’s ammonia and nitric acid manufacturing facility in Deer Island, Ore., on Sept. 29, 2008. EPA alleges that the company failed to notify the appropriate emergency response entities until approximately 11 hours after the release occurred.
Exposure to high levels of xylene and ethylbenzene can cause a variety of human health effects, including harm to the nervous system, fatigue, general weakness, memory loss, and visual problems.
In addition to issuing willful, repeat, and serious citations to the company, OSHA also issued it a notice of failure-to-abate citation relating to its failure to implement a respiratory program, institute a medical surveillance program for workers overexposed to chromium VI, and develop and implement a hazard communication program for workers exposed to caustics and corrosives.
The agriculture and health ministers announced Friday the addition of 166 new food safety staffers, 24/7 availability of health risk assessment teams, and improved tracking of food illnesses through a national surveillance system.
The new IPAF safety video uses scenarios extracted from its popular operator training course, which is used to train about 80,000 people per year.
The standard applies to the evaluation of vibration on rotodynamic pump applications, specifically when the vibration measurements are made on non-rotating parts (bearing housing vibration).
"Workers exposed to occupational hazards requiring head, foot, or eye and face protection will now be provided protection based on a standard that reflects state-of-the-art technology and materials," said acting Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Jordan Barab.
The Food and Drug Administration recently announced that St. Louis-based Care-Tech Laboratories Inc. and its principal officers, John C. Brereton and Sherry L. Brereton, have signed a consent decree, agreeing to stop the illegal manufacture, marketing, and distribution of over-the-counter (OTC) antimicrobial drugs used to treat and prevent infection.