OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14293922
MEK,WORK RULES,FIRE,EXPLOSION,HEARING LOSS,CHEMICAL REACTION,STYRENE,CHEMICAL BURN,UNTRAINED
Event description
EMPLOYEE INJURED IN CHEMICAL EXPLOSION
Investigation abstract
A GROUP OF EMPLOYEES WERE CONSTRUCTING A FIBERGLASS BOAT IN THE CHOPPER GUN AREA O BE EMPLOYEE LACK OF TRAINING ON THE PHYSICAL HAZARDS OF CHEMICALS, AND LACK OF LABELLING OF THE MEK PEROXIDE, WHICH CONTAINED STYRENE. . THEY WERE WORKING WITH STYRENE MONOMER, METHYL ETHYL KETONE PEROXIDE, AND FIBE RGLASS. THEY WERE RUNNING LOW ON MEK PEROXIDE, SO THEY ADDED THREE PARTIALLY FUL L CONTAINERS OF WHAT THEY BELIEVED TO BE MEK PEROXIDE TO THE RESERVOIR. AS EMPLO YEE #1 RESUMED OPERATION OF THE CHOPPER GUN THERE WAS A SUDDEN EXPLOSION AND FIR E. LUCKILY, THE MAIN FORCE OF THE EXPLOSION BLEW AWAY FROM THE EMPLOYEES. THE EM PLOYEE WAS TREATED FOR MINOR CHEMICAL BURNS AND EXPERIENCED A TEMPORARY THRESHOL D SHIFT IN HEARING. LAB ANALYSIS REVEALED THAT THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT OF STYRENE IN ONE OF THE MEK PEROXIDE CONTAINERS. CAUSAL FACTORS WERE DETERMINED T
Victim
-
#1 Non-hospitalized injury Age 20 M
- Nature of injury
- 4
- Part of body
- 20
- Event type
- 14
- Source
- 9
- Occupation code
- 787
- Human factor
- 14
- Environmental factor
- 9
- Hazardous substance
- 2280
- Task assigned
- 1
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