105,313Records 71,083Employers 85,290Hospitalizations 27,770Amputations 2015-01-01 2025-10-31
Safety Incidents OSHA Severe Injury Reports · 2015–2025

OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14495428

BURN,HEAD,FIRE EXTINGUISHER,FIRE,BACK,EXPLOSION,ARM,ASPHALT,LEG

Event
BURN,HEAD,FIRE EXTINGUISHER,FIRE,BACK,EXPLOSION,ARM,ASPHALT,LEG
Linked inspection
No inspection record linked to this accident's victims.
Summary number
14495428
Report ID
627700

Event description

THREE EMPLOYEES BURNED IN EXPLOSION AT ASPHALT PLANT

Investigation abstract

ON SEPTEMBER 21, 1987, THREE EMPLOYEES WERE FIGHTING A FIRE IN THE PREHEATER BOX AT AN ASPHALT MANUFACTURING PLANT. THEY WERE NOT ABLE TO EXTINGUISH THE FIRE WI TH HAND HELD FIRE EXTINGUISHERS AND HAD BACKED AWAY FROM THE FIRE AREA ABOUT 58 FEET TO THE WEST. THEY HAD BEEN STANDING IN THAT AREA FOR ABOUT 5 MINUTES WHEN T HEY HEARD A HISSING NOISE AND REALIZED SOMETHING WAS GOING TO EXPLODE. THEY TURN ED AND WERE RUNNING AWAY WHEN HE ASPHALT PUMP EXPLODED. A FIRE PLUME ENGULFED TH E THREE EMPLOYEES FROM THE REAR. THEY SUSTAINED SECOND AND THIRD DEGREE BURNS ON THEIR BACKS AND THE BACK SIDE OF THEIR LEGS, ARMS AND HEAD (OVER 50% OF THEIR B ODIES).

Victims (3)

  1. #1 Hospitalized Age 41 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    4
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    999
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    18
    Task assigned
    1
  2. #2 Hospitalized Age 31 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    4
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    999
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    18
    Task assigned
    1
  3. #3 Hospitalized Age 29 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    4
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    999
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    18
    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.