OSHA Inspection: BIRDSONG PEANUTS, INC.

Issued

Jan 22, 1996

Abate by

Mar 8, 1996

Penalty

Initial $1,375 · Current $500 Reduced

General-duty citation text

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970:  The
employer did not
furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from
recognized hazards that
were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to
employees in that employees
were exposed to:
The employees at BirdSong Peanuts located at South U.S. 287 in Memphis,
Texas, are exposed
to the hazards associated with falls.  Employees are required to retrieve
50 to 110 pound peanut
bags from a peanut stack located in the cold storage warehouse.  The
peanut bags are stacked
onto pallet boards which are in turn stacked one on top of the other
(usually 4 or 5 pallet boards)
high to a height of over 18 feet. In order to gain access to the top of
the peanut stack the
employees stand on the forks of the forklift or a pallet supported by the
forks of the forklift and
are raised to the top of the stack. The employees must then walk across
the peanut stack and
locate the desired peanut bag--many times located toward the middle or
rear
of the stack--and
physically carry the desired peanut bag toward the edge of the stack to
load it onto the raised
(by forklift) pallet. Peanut bags can be located anywhere within the
stack, depending on which
buyer the peanut bags are being retrieved for. Many buyers will make a
purchase of peanuts,
but will not take possession of the peanut bags at the time of purchase.
The BirdSong Peanut Co.
will store the peanut bags in what is referred to as "lots" in the cold
storage warehouse until
such time that the buyer is ready to receive the purchase.  The employees
must also retrieve
peanut bags for a buyer that wants to check the quality of the peanut
previously purchased (again
many times located in the middle or towards the rear of the stack) to
ensure that the peanuts are
of high quality.  The process of raising the employee to the top of the
stack whether by fork or
pallet and walking across the stacks to retrieve the peanut bags from a
particular lot and standing
at the edge of the stack while loading 50 - 110 pound peanut bags onto a
raised pallet exposes
employees to falls from a height of over 18 feet onto a concrete floor.
The injuries from such
a fall can result in bone fractures, lacerations and death.  Feasible and
acceptable methods to
correct this hazard include, but are not limited to, the following:
Provide employees engaged in this process with a personal fall arrest
system such as a
body belt and/or body harness equipped with a retractable lanyard;
attachable to a lifeline
that can be anchored overhead either wall to wall or beam to beam and a
safety platform
designed to accommodate an employee and a determined amount (either by
number or
weight) of peanut bags can be used to raise the employee to the top of the
stack.  The
employee, using a body harness or belt, could then attach the retractable
lanyard to a
lifeline and proceed to retrieve the peanut bags.  After the employee has
retrieved the
peanut bags and placed them onto the safety platform he/she could then
step onto the
platform and detach the lanyard from the life line and be lowered
simultaneously
with
the peanut bags in the safety platform.
In the alternative, the peanut stacks could be stacked to a height of six
feet or less and
a portable or mobile ladder could be used to gain access to the top of the
peanut stack.

Issued

Jan 22, 1996

Abate by

Mar 8, 1996

Penalty

Initial $1,375 · Current $500 Reduced