OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #739789
RESPIRATORY,DEMOLITION,INHALATION,CHLORINE,PIPE,TOXIC FUMES,GAS LEAK,CHEMICAL
Event description
DEMOLITION EMPLOYEE EXPOSED TO CHLORINE VAPORS
Investigation abstract
EMPLOYEE #1 WAS DOING DEMOLITION WORK IN A CHLORATE PLANT. USING A PROPANE-OXYGE N CUTTING TORCH, HE CUT INTO A 1 1/2 INCH STEEL PIPE CONTAINING CHLORINE. THE PI PE WAS CUT WHERE IT PASSED THROUGH THE WALL INTO THE NORTHWEST CORNER OF THE CHL ORATE CELL ROOM, APPROXIMATELY TEN FEET ABOVE THE FLOOR. EMPLOYEE #1 HURRIEDLY D ESCENDED THE LADDER FROM WHICH HE HAD BEEN WORKING, SLIPPED AND FELL FROM THE SE COND OR THIRD RUNG. WHEN HE FELL HE TOOK A QUICK BREATH AND INHALED SOME OF THE CHLORINE VAPORS ESCAPING FROM THE PARTIALLY CUT PIPE. THE PIPES IN THE PLANT WER E NOT CHECKED TO FIND OUT IF THEY CONTAINED HAZARDOUS CHEMICALS BEFORE DEMOLITIO N WORK BEGAN. EMPLOYEE #1 WAS HOSPITALIZED.
Victims (2)
-
#1 Hospitalized Age 19 M
- Nature of injury
- 4
- Part of body
- 28
- Event type
- 8
- Source
- 9
- Occupation code
- 783
- Human factor
- 4
- Environmental factor
- 7
- Hazardous substance
- 0640
- Task assigned
- 1
-
#981 Degree 0 Age 0
- Nature of injury
- 0
- Part of body
- 0
- Event type
- 0
- Source
- 0
- Occupation code
- 0
- Human factor
- 0
- Environmental factor
- 0
- Task assigned
- 0
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.