OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14299937
CHEMETALS INC
BALTIMORE, MD·
Event description
EMPLOYEE INHALED METHANE AND NITROGEN GAS
Investigation abstract
EMPLOYEE #1, A SHAFT FURNACE OPERATOR, WAS ROASTING MANGANESE ORE IN AN INERT AT MOSPHERE OF METHANE AND NITROGEN. A "CLINKER" JAMMED UP THE 8 INCH DISCHARGE PIP E. THE EMPLOYEE REMOVED THE CAP FROM A 6 INCH NIPPLE TO CLEAN THE PIPE, BUT BREA THED THE METHANE AND NITROGEN GASES EMITTED FROM THE CHARGED SYSTEM. THE EMPLOYE E HAD RECEIVED 30 DAYS OF TRAINING, AND HAD WORKED AT THIS JOB FOR A YEAR AND A HALF. THERE WERE NO WITNESSES. THE EMPLOYEE WAS FULLY RECOVERED AFTER 1 HOUR. CA USAL FACTOR: EMPLOYEE FAILURE TO FOLLOW WRITTEN AND VERBAL ORDERS. HE HAD BEEN I NSTRUCTED TO SHUT OFF THE GASES BEFORE OPENING THE SEALED SYSTEM.
Victim
-
#1 Hospitalized Age 38 M
- Nature of injury
- 2
- Part of body
- 28
- Event type
- 8
- Source
- 19
- Occupation code
- 766
- Human factor
- 1
- Environmental factor
- 7
- Hazardous substance
- 1640
- Task assigned
- 1
Codes shown verbatim from OSHA's accident-investigation database. A human-readable decoder is coming in a future release once the accident_lookup2 dictionary is loaded.