OSHA Inspection: WILLAMETTE INDUSTRIES INC

Issued

Apr 23, 2001

Abate by

May 24, 2001

Penalty

Initial $1,625

General-duty citation text

ORS654.010:  The employer did not furnish a place of employment which was
safe and healthful
for employees, and did not do every other thing reasonably necessary to
protect the life, safety,
and health of the employees as evidenced by the following:
(a) On or about October 25, 2000, the employer at this site had an
accumulation of combustible
dust at line #4 that resulted in an employee receiving burns and
subsequently died as a result of
those burns.
1) The first deflagration occurred as an employee attempted to change a
light bulb at the
ceiling level.
2) Subsequent deflagrations occurred as result of the accumulations of
wood dust that had
collected on surfaces throughout line #4 being shook loose.
(b) The employer at this site had an accumulation of combustible dust.
Samples collected by OR-
OSHA showed the following:
1) Analysis of the wood dust collected from the top of a light fixture, on
or about November
11, 2001, showed that 92of the dust passed through a 40 mesh sieve and
it was classified as
combustible dust based on particle size.
2) Analysis of the wood dust collected from line #4, on or about Feburary
9, 2001, showed
that 98of the dust passed through a 40 mesh size sieve and it was
classified as combustible
dust based on particle size.
3) According to an explosivity test (Kst test) performed by the federal
OSHA lab, the wood
dust sample that was collected on or about Feburary 9, 2001, was
determined to be explosive.
(c) On or about December 19,2000, the employer at this site had an
accumulation of combustible
dust greater than one eighth of an inch in the area of line #4 including,
but not limited to, the
thick layer of wood dust lying under the process line.
NOTE:  Reference "NFPA 664 Standards for the Prevention of Fires and
Explosions in Wood
Processing and Woodworking Facilities".