OSHA Inspection: CAPITOL SECURITY POLICE INC

Issued

Sep 24, 2008

Abate by

Mar 10, 2009

Penalty

Initial $63,000 · Current $5,000 Reduced

General-duty citation text

Section 6(a) of the Puerto Rico Occupational Safety and Health Act:  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 physical harm to employees in
that employees were
exposed to:
Seccion 6(a) de la Ley de Seguridad y Salud en el Trabajo de Puerto Rico:
El patrono no
proveyo empleo y un sitio de empleo libre de riesgos reconocidos que esten
causando o que
puedan causar muerte o dano fisico a los empleados, por cuanto empleados
estaban expuestos
a:
Receive severes contusions, lacerations, abrasions, severe body trauma and
death.
An employee was working as security guard near to a steel crossing gate of
two
parts which weight nearly 1,000 pounds and which was not installed
completely.
This gate is supposed to be to work with an electric power engine and with
an
emergency system which stop immediately when arrives to the closing point.
This is a mobile gate that was used manually and did not have in both
sides any
type of steel device to avoid that both parts of it come out of the rail.
Previously
such gate fell down several times and in one of them Capitol Security
Police
dismissed one employee aparent and allegedly for this reason without any
type of
explanation.  Also another time this gate fell down at certain time early
in the
morning to one of the PRPEA (Puerto Rico Power Electric Authority) employee
in the presence of another employee of Capitol Security Police when he
pulled it
to try to entry to the work area.  At this area there are two additional
gates which
conduce to the Irrigation area and which were not used for entry and exit
and the
employer having knowledge about the hazard, permited his employees work
near
and behind to this main entrance gate.  The employer did not perform a
workplace hazard analysis about the danger that represent for his
employees the
fact of use this gate manually without been installed completely and
secure.  The
employer did not take caution measures to assure his employees will not
working
near to this gate at any moment as a preventive action or takes another
safety
measures that keep them aware when they were walking near to it.  Last
april 17,
2008 a woman security guard working for the company known as Capitol
Security
Police was working inside of the Puerto Rico Electric Power Electric
Authority
(Irrigation District).  She was waiting for the exit of the last employee
of the day
to pull the main entrance crossing gate located at the main entrance and
close it.
When she pulled and tried of joined both parts of the gate, she exceed its
extreme
limits, came out of the rail and fell down over her causing death
immediately due
to severe body trauma as established in the autopsy.
Location:  entrance area of the Puerto Rico Power Electric Authority
(Irrigation
District) Mora Camp, Road #2, km 112.4, Isabela, P.R.
Among other methods, one feasible and acceptable abatement method to
correct
this hazard is the performing of a workplace hazard analysis and keep
employees
far enough of the main entrance crossing gate, using as entrance and exit
theother two additional gates located at both sides of it which conduce to
the
Irrigation area.  Establish no one of them are suppose to work near to
such main
entrance gate until its installation is complete and secure with a least
two steel
safety devices on each part that avoid the crossing gate exceed the
extreme limits
and come out of the rail.  The employer must establish this prevention
plan with
the boss engineer of the (PRPEA).  Also the employer must included another
safety measures that keep aware employees when they are walking near to
this
main entrance crossing gate.
Recibir contusiones severas, laceraciones, abrasiones, trauma severo
corporal y
muerte.
Una empleada estuvo trabajando como guardia de seguridad cerca de un porton
de dos hojas el cual pesa aproximadamente 1,000 libras y el cual no fue
instalado
completamente.  Este porton estaba supuesto a funcionar con un motor de
energia
electrica y con un sistema de emergencia el cual se detiene inmediatamente
cuando llegue hasta el punto de cierre.  Este es un porton movible que fue
utilizado manualmente y no tenia en ambos lados algun tipo dispositivo de
acero
que evitara que ambas partes se salieran del carril.  Previamente dicho
porton se
habia caido varias veces y en una de ellas Capitol Security Police
despidio a uno
de los empleados aparente y alegadamente por esta razon sin ningun tipo de
explicacion.  Tambien este porton se le cayo en un momento dado temprano en
la manana a uno de los empleados de la AEE en presencia de otro de los
empleados de Capitol Security Police cuando lo halo para tratar de entrar
al
area
de trabajo.  En esta area hay dos portones adicionales los cuales conducen
al area
de Riego y los cuales no fueron utilizados para entrar y salir y el patrono
teniendo conocimiento acerca del riesgo permitio que sus empleados
trabajaran
cerca y detras del porton de entrada principal.  El patrono no realizo un
analisis
de riesgos acerca del peligro que representa para sus empleados el hecho de
utilizar este porton manualmente sin haber sido instalado completamente y
seguro.
El patrono tampoco tomo medidas de precaucion para asegurarse de que sus
empleados no trabajarian cerca de este porton en ningun momento como accion
preventiva o de tomar otras medidas de precaucion para mantenerlos alertas
cuando estos estuvieran caminando cerca de el.  El pasado 17 de abril de
2008
una mujer guardia de seguridad trabajando para la compania conocida como
Capitol Security Police estuvo trabajando en el interior del Distrito de
Riego de
la Autoridad de Energia Electrica de Puerto Rico.  Ella estuvo esperando
por la
salida del ultimo empleado del dia para halar el porton localizado en la
entrada
principal y cerrarlo.  Cuando ella lo halo y trato de juntar ambas partes
del
porton, excedio sus limites, se salio del carril y cayo sobre ella
ocasionandole la
muerte inmediatamente debido a trauma corporal severo establecido asi en la
autopsia.
Localizacion:  area de entrada principal de la Autoridad de Energia
Electrica de
Puerto Rico, (Distrito de Riego), Campamento Mora, Carr. #2, km 112.4,
Isabela
P.R.Entre otros metodos, un metodo de correccion factible y aceptable para
corregir
este riesgo es la realizacion de un analisis de riesgos y mantener a los
empleados
bastante lejos del porton de entrada principal, utilizando como entrada y
salida los
otros dos portones adicionales localizados a ambos lados de este que
conducen al
area de Riego.  Establecer que ninguno de ellos estan supuestos a trabajar
cerca
de dicho porton de entrada principal hasta tanto su instalacion sea
completa y
segura por lo menos con dos dispositivos de acero en cada hoja que evite
que este
se exceda de sus limites y se salga de su carril.  El patrono debe
establecer este
plan de prevencion con el ingeniero jefe de la AEE.  Tambien el patrono
debe
incluir otras medidas de seguridad que mantengan alerta a los empleados
cuando
estos esten caminando cerca de este porton de entrada principal."