OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14412126
REICHHOLD CHEMICALS
HOUSTON, TX·
Event description
Employee dies after small explosion and fire
Investigation abstract
Employee #1 was mopping the floor in Operator Control Room B (a lab) with a flam mable liquid lab cleaner containing 50 percent toluene and 50 percent methyl eth yl ketone. Employee #1 either lit a cigarette or threw one close to the floor dr ain, igniting the flammable vapors and resulting in a small explosion and flash fire. Employee #1 was burned and later died as a result of his injuries.
Victim
-
#1 Fatality Age 33 Male
- Nature of injury
- Burn/Scald(Heat) (5)
- Part of body
- MULTIPLE (19)
- Accident type
- INHALATION (8)
- Source of injury
- FIRE/SMOKE (16)
- Occupation
- Occupation not reported (999)
- Human factor
- MALFUNC IN SECURING/WARNING OP (4)
- Environmental factor
- FLAMMABLE LIQ/SOLID EXPOSURE (10)
- Task assigned
- Task regularly assigned (1)
Labels are OSHA's own, from the code dictionary published with the accident-investigation file. The raw code is shown beside each one so this page can be reconciled against OSHA's bulk data. OSHA notes that nature of injury, part of body, source of injury and accident type in this file are not coded to the Occupational Injury and Illness Classification System, and that the occupation titles are not standardised — so these values are not directly comparable with the OIICS-coded severe injury reports.