OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14542849
FIRE EXT SYSTEM,RESPIRATORY,MAINTENANCE,ASPHYXIATED,CARBON DIOXIDE
Event description
ASPHYXIATED BY CARBON DIOXIDE GAS
Investigation abstract
TWO EMPLOYEES WERE WORKING ON THE CARBON DIOXIDE FIRE EXTINGUISHING SYSTEM WHICH LINDERS. AFTER INVESTIGATING THE DETECTORS WHICH WERE BELIEVED TO CAUSING THE PR OBLEM, THE TWO MEN CLEARED THE PANEL BY TAKING THE LINE RESISTOR AND MARKING IT TO THE #7 DETECTOR. EMPLOYEE #2 TOLD EMPLOYEE #1 THAT HE WAS GOING TO CONNECT TH E TWO WIRES TO SEE IF THE PANEL WAS CLEAR. EMPLOYEE #2 REMOVED THE RESISTOR IN T HE PANEL AND TOUCHED THE WIRES TO THE TERMINALS. THE SYSTEM DISCHARGED EIGHTEEN 50-POUND BOTTLES AND SIX 75-POUND BOTTLES OF CARBON DIOXIDE. EMPLOYEE #1 WAS TRA PPED IN THE PIT. EMPLOYEE #2 TRIED TO GET EMPLOYEE #1 OUT, BUT WAS OVERCOME BY T HE CARBON DIOXIDE AND PASSED OUT. PROTECTS THE PIT UNDER THE GAS FILL AT THE END OF THE CHASSIS LINE. THE PIT, FR OM THE BULKHEAD TO THE END OF THE LINE, IS 140 FEET LONG, 14 FEET WIDE, AND 5.5 FEET DEEP. THE TWO MEN HAD FINISHED THEIR WORK AND PUT THE SYSTEM BACK INTO OPER ATION. ON THEIR FINAL CHECK THEY GOT A TROUBLE LIGHT INDICATION IN THE DETECTION LOOP. AT THIS POINT THE TWO MEN PUT THE PANEL IN THE ABORT SYSTEM MODE, WHICH I S SUPPOSED TO ELECTRICALLY DISARM THE SYSTEM. EMPLOYEE #2 THEN DISCONNECTED AND TIED TOGETHER THE #9 AND #11 WIRES FROM THE PANEL. THESE ARE THE DETECTION WIRES . THE TWO MEN WENT BACK INTO THE PIT WITHOUT DISCONNECTING THE CARBON DIOXIDE CY
Victims (2)
-
#1 Fatality Age 65 M
- Nature of injury
- 2
- Part of body
- 28
- Event type
- 9
- Source
- 19
- Occupation code
- 999
- Human factor
- 1
- Environmental factor
- 7
- Hazardous substance
- 0530
- Task assigned
- 2
-
#2 Hospitalized Age 35 M
- Nature of injury
- 2
- Part of body
- 28
- Event type
- 9
- Source
- 19
- Occupation code
- 999
- Human factor
- 1
- Environmental factor
- 7
- Hazardous substance
- 0530
- 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.