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

OKARCHE, OKLAHOMA—

J & R Transport, Inc.

Vehicle or machinery fire · Fractures and burns

Final narrative

Three employees for J&R Transport were onsite when a flash fire occurred at an oil/gas wellsite. J&R Transport was hired to clean heater treater equipment at the wellsite. The heater treater had been removed from the oil/gas well system and was placed adjacent to the well head. A roustabout crew from another employer was onsite and removed the bolts and fire tube from the heater treater. When the tire tube was removed, a black liquid came out of the heater treater and spilled onto the ground and surrounding area. J&R Transport performed vacuum truck operations to remove the liquid from the ground. When that was complete, two J&R Transport employees began power washing the inside of the heater treater. One employee operated the power washer wand while the other employee operated the vacuum truck's suction hose. During this operation, a flash fire occurred inside the heater treater vessel resulting in fire shooting from the open end of the vessel where the two employees were working. One employee was thrown backward and suffered fractures to his collar bone, ribs, and shoulder and burns to face and arms. The other employee suffered second degree burns to his hands and first degree burns to his face. One employee was hospitalized.

Hospitalized Multiple body parts, n.e.c. Oil drilling rigs and machinery

Similar incidents · Same event type

MIDLAND, TEXAS—

Flogistix, LP

An employee removed the spark plugs and was rotating an engine to evacuate condensate from the cylinders. An unknown source ignited the condensate and natural gas. The employee sustained burns to the back of his hands and upper leg area.

MILLWOOD, WEST VIRGINIA—

AL-REC, LLC

An employee was operating a front-end loader when a hydraulic line broke, causing the front-end loader to catch on fire. The employee jumped from the cab to the ground and sustained fractures to the T-6 vertebra and a heel.

BIG WELLS, TEXAS—

Baytex Energy USA

An employee was near a hybrid separator when it malfunctioned, resulting in a flash fire that burned the employee's upper body.

SHEPHERD, TEXAS—

Sound Resource Solutions

An employee was moving two totes of turpentine. Noticing that one of them was leaking, he stopped his forklift and began to look for the leak. The forklift caught fire, and the employee suffered severe burns. He was hospitalized.

NORWALK, OHIO—

Borgers Ohio, Inc.

An employee was performing maintenance on a machine when part of an adjacent machine caught fire. The employee extinguished the fire and suffered smoke inhalation.