Fire Safety


Worker's Arc Flash Burning on SUNY Campus Leads to $88K Fine

"This is a clear example of the grave consequences that can result when basic electrical safeguards are not provided and used," said Arthur Dube, OSHA's area director in Buffalo.

Acetylene

OSHA Amends Acetylene Standard, Issues Final Rule

The revised standard updates references for the provisions addressing piping systems, as well as acetylene generators and filling acetylene cylinders and requires that in-plant transfer, handling, storage, and use of acetylene cylinders comply with Compressed Gas Association Pamphlet G-1-2003, titled Acetylene.

More than 1,000 federal and state inspections under the OSHA combustible dust National Emphasis Program uncovered more than 4,000 violations.

Combustible Dust Activist Also Hosting Meetings

Across the street from the site of OSHA's Dec. 14 meetings in Washington, D.C., John Astad will lead group discussions of OSHA's proposed rulemaking.

IOSH says the most powerful Buncefield explosion is thought to be the largest ever in peacetime Europe. This photo is posted on the site of MP Mike Penning.

British MP Celebrates Buncefield Pleas

Total UK pleaded guilty to charges it failed to adequately manage risks associated with filling and monitoring oil storage tanks at the fuel depot when overfilling caused a powerful explosion in December 2005. MP Mike Penning hopes the pleas will lead to compensation payments to constituents.

This photo, posted by the Chemical Safety Board, shows the fuel depot burning.

Strong Parallels Between Bayamon, Buncefield: CSB

The CSB will examine similarities and differences between the two fuel depot incidents in England and Puerto Rico, trying to help the industry understand what went wrong.

CSB Safety Message Urges State Adoption of ASME Pressure Vessel Code

Chemical Safety Board Chairman John Bresland released a new video safety message on Nov. 12 asking jurisdictions across the country to adopt the ASME Pressure Vessel Code to reduce the number of accidents involving catastrophic pressure vessel failures in process industries.

USFA Releases University Housing Fires Report

The United States Fire Administration (USFA) has issued a special report examining the causes and characteristics of fires in college and university residential buildings that include dormitories, fraternity, and sorority houses.

An image of people at A+A Messe Dusseldorf.

Huge Crowds Fill A+A's Halls

Attendees from around the world are filling some of the lavish booths occupied by the largest PPE companies, including the Uvex unit of Sperian Protection, Honeywell Safety Products, MSA, Ansell, and more.



Crane and Grain Service Fined $9,300 Following Worker's Electrocution

OSHA said the alleged serious violations stem from the employer using a flexible cord that was not properly wired, improper use of ladders that were damaged, and lack of ladder training.

Glenn Gaines, deputy U.S. fire administrator

Home Fire Sprinklers Kept in Building Code

The International Code Council voted Wednesday night to preserve the decision made last year, IAFC said. Glenn Gaines, deputy U.S. fire administrator, spoke passionately about the need for residential sprinklers.

USFA Kicks Off Public Fire Safety Campaign

The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) has launched an effort to encourage everyone to install and maintain home smoke alarms and, if possible, sprinklers. More than 3,000 people die in home fires each year, and the majority of them have no working smoke alarm.

Armored Car Facility Found Electrically Unsafe, Faces Nearly $113K in Fines

"Electricity moves--and can kill or injure--at the speed of light. It doesn't give you a second chance," said C. William Freeman III, OSHA's area director in Hartford, Conn.

Construction Co. Cited for Lack of Safety Program, 15 Other Violations

Employees not wearing PPE and the employer's failure to develop, implement, or maintain a written hazard communications program for employees working with mortar or cement were among the 11 repeat violations, which, together with five serious violations, have proposed penalties totaling $146,000.

Feds Start Study of SCBA Facepieces' Thermal Strength

The United States Fire Administration and the National Institute of Standards and Technology have started a research study to examine the enhancement of thermal performance of Self-Contained Breathing Apparatus (SCBA) face pieces to increase the protection of firefighters.

OSHA Starts Combustible Dust Rulemaking

OSHA has been conducting a Combustible Dust National Emphasis Program (NEP) since October 2007, which it says has resulted in an unusually high number of General Duty Clause violations, indicating a strong need for a standard.

Embalming Fluid Facility Cited for Formaldehyde Hazards

Inspections conducted over the past several months by OSHA's area office in Andover, Mass., also identified various chemical, mechanical, and electrical hazards--41 violations in all, with proposed penalties totaling $138,000.

Pet Food Facility Fined for Combustible Dust Hazards, Lockout/Tagout Issues

In April, a fire at the facility sent three workers to a local hospital. The resulting inspection revealed nine alleged willful, four serious, two repeat, and two failure-to-abate violations.

Operators of liquid propane pipelines should include 911 agencies in their educational programs, the National Transportation Safety Board recommended Oct. 14.

NTSB Urges Better 911 Coordination by Pipeline Operators

The board concluded Wednesday that the American Petroleum Institute's Recommended Practice 1162 should explicitly identify 911 emergency call centers as emergency response agencies included in pipeline operators' public education programs.

Tortilla Maker Gets Served $231,600 in OSHA-Proposed Penalties

Most of that sum is the result of the company’s failure to correct seven violations identified during a previous inspection that focused on the firm’s lack of an energy control program to ensure machinery would not start up at inopportune times.

Violating hazmat regulations for packaging and handling lithium batteries can bring a maximum civil penalty of $50,000, $100,000 if serious injury, death, or substantial property destruction results.

Lithium Battery Warnings Not Sinking In

FAA and the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration published a safety advisory in yesterday's Federal Register citing five aircraft incidents since July 1.

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