104,543Records 70,659Employers 84,666Hospitalizations 27,563Amputations 2015-01-01 2025-09-30
Safety Incidents OSHA Severe Injury Reports · 2015–2025

OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #731232

BURN,FIRE,RUPTURE,STEAM,EXPLOSION,MOLTEN METAL,SPILL,MANHOLE,WATER

Event
BURN,FIRE,RUPTURE,STEAM,EXPLOSION,MOLTEN METAL,SPILL,MANHOLE,WATER
Linked inspection
No inspection record linked to this accident's victims.
Summary number
731232
Report ID
551800

Event description

SPILLED MOLTEN METAL CAUSED STEAM EXPLOSION; WORKERS BURNED

Investigation abstract

EMPLOYEE #1, A CRANE OPERATOR, WAS LIFTING A POT OF MOLTEN ALUMINUM. ONE OF FOUR HOOKS CAME LOOSE, ALLOWING THE MOLTEN ALUMINUM TO SPILL INTO A MANHOLE AND INTO CONTACT WITH COLD WATER. A STEAM EXPLOSION RESULTED. EMPLOYEE #1 WAS KILLED. EM PLOYEES #2 AND #3, A SUPERVISOR AND A PIT HELPER, WERE HOSPITALIZED WITH BURNS. EMPLOYEE #4 SUSTAINED BURNS ON HIS BACK, BUT WAS NOT HOSPITALIZED. EMPLOYEES #5 AND #6 ALSO SUSTAINED LESS SERIOUS BURNS NOT REQUIRING HOSPITALIZATION. EMPLOYEE #5 WAS ANOTHER SUPERVISOR. EMPLOYEE #6, A FURNACE OPERATOR, WAS 80 FEET AWAY FR OM THE EXPLOSION SITE. WHEN THE CRANE FELL, IT RUPTURED A A GAS LINE, CAUSING AN OTHER EXPLOSION AND FIRE.

Victims (6)

  1. #1 Fatality Age 28 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    4
    Event type
    12
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    849
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    10
    Hazardous substance
    8330
    Task assigned
    1
  2. #2 Hospitalized Age 38 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    4
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    863
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    10
    Hazardous substance
    8330
    Task assigned
    1
  3. #3 Hospitalized Age 24 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    12
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    864
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    10
    Hazardous substance
    8330
    Task assigned
    1
  4. #4 Non-hospitalized injury Age 39 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    3
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    864
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    10
    Hazardous substance
    8330
    Task assigned
    1
  5. #5 Non-hospitalized injury Age 34 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    2
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    863
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    10
    Hazardous substance
    8330
    Task assigned
    1
  6. #6 Non-hospitalized injury Age 20 M

    Nature of injury
    5
    Part of body
    18
    Event type
    14
    Source
    16
    Occupation code
    766
    Human factor
    1
    Environmental factor
    10
    Hazardous substance
    8330
    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.