OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14481212
BURN,COAL TAR PITCH,COAL DUST,FIRE,EXPLOSION,CONVEYOR,PURGING
Event description
COAL TAR PITCH DUST EXPLOSION AND FIRE
Investigation abstract
CRUSHED COAL TAR PITCH HAD JAMMED IN A "BRADY" CONVEYOR SYSTEM. TWO EMPLOYEES, A RIGHTS LEFT. WHILE ONE OF THE FOREMEN WAS AT THE AIR CONTROL VALVE, PRESSURIZING THE SYSTEM TO BLOW OUT THE PLUG, A CLOUD OF DUST AND A BALL OF FIRE CAME UPSTAI RS AND OUT OF THE BASEMENT. THERE WAS INSTANTLY A FLASH FIRE IN THE BUILDING. TH EN A MAJOR FIRE BROKE OUT AS THE PITCH RESIDUE, WHICH WAS EVERYWHERE, BEGAN TO B URN. THE TWO FOREMEN WALKED OUT OF THE BUILDING ON THEIR OWN, WITH MOST OF THEIR CLOTHING BURNT OFF THEM. BOTH HAD SECOND AND THIRD DEGREE BURNS OVER 70% OF THE IR BODIES. THE IGNITION SOURCE FOR THE EXPLOSION AND FIRE WAS MOST PROBABLY A BR OKEN INCANDESCENT LIGHT BULB. LONG WITH TWO FOREMEN, HAD GONE TO THE BASEMENT OF THE BUILDING AND REMOVED A SE CTION OF THE PIPE. THEY WERE GOING TO INCREASE AIR PRESSURE IN THE LINE TO PURGE THE MATERIAL BY BLOWING IT OUT AT THE POINT WHERE THE PIPE HAD BEEN DISCONNECTE D. THIS WAS A COMMON PRACTICE AND WAS THE SECOND TIME IT HAD BEEN DONE ON THIS S AME SHIFT. WHEN THE LINE CLEARS ITSELF THE ENTIRE BUILDING IS ENGULFED IN COAL T AR DUST. THE AREA HAD NOT BEEN CLEANED IN OVER TWO WEEKS, ALLOWING AN UNUSUAL AM OUNT OF PITCH TO BUILD UP IN THE BASEMENT. THE TWO FOREMEN (MAINTENANCE) TOLD TH E TWO MILLWRIGHTS TO GO ON BREAK WHILE THEY BLEW OUT THE PLUGGED LINE. THE MILLW
Victims (2)
-
#1 Fatality Age 49 M
- Nature of injury
- 5
- Part of body
- 19
- Event type
- 14
- Source
- 16
- Occupation code
- 999
- Human factor
- 9
- Environmental factor
- 10
- Hazardous substance
- 0700
- Task assigned
- 1
-
#2 Fatality Age 55 M
- Nature of injury
- 5
- Part of body
- 19
- Event type
- 14
- Source
- 16
- Occupation code
- 999
- Human factor
- 9
- Environmental factor
- 10
- Hazardous substance
- 0700
- 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.