OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14386486
BURN,FLAMMABLE VAPORS,WORK RULES,FIRE,CONSTRUCTION,TORCH,EXPLOSION,CUTTING AND BURNING
Event description
EMPLOYEE KILLED WHILE TORCH CUTTING A PIPE ON A STORAGE TANK
Investigation abstract
ON JUNE 26, 1986 A CONTRACTOR CREW WAS ATTEMPTING TO TIP UP A THIN-DOWN TANK AT A RESIN MANUFACTURING PLANT. WHEN THEY JACKED UP THE REAR OF THE TANK THE DRAIN PIPE AT THE FRONT PRESSED AGAINST THE GROUND AND CAUSED THE TANK TO LIFT OFF THE GROUND. SINCE A NEW DRAIN PIPE WAS TO BE INSTALLED, EMPLOYEE #1 ATTEMPTED TO CU T THE PIPE WITH A GAS TORCH WHILE STANDING IN FRONT OF THE TANK'S OPEN MANHOLE. WHEN THE TORCH FLAME PENETRATED THE DRAIN PIPE THE TANK EXPLODED. EMPLOYEE #1 SU FFERED FATAL BURNS, AND WAS PROPELLED ACROSS THE ROOM BY THE FORCE OF THE EXPLOS ION. THE TANK HAD PREVIOUSLY CONTAINED TOLUENE, AND HAD NOT BEEN PROPERLY CLEANE D OR VENITILATED BEFORE THE ATTEMPT TO CUT WAS MADE.
Victim
-
#1 Fatality Age 31 M
- Nature of injury
- 5
- Part of body
- 19
- Event type
- 1
- Source
- 16
- Occupation code
- 999
- Human factor
- 18
- Environmental factor
- 10
- 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.