OSHA Penalizes N.E. Company for Facility Fire, and S.D. Company for Worker Death

OSHA has levied a total proposed penalty of $147,000 on New England Wood Pellet LLC for workplace violations that endangered the safety and lives of its workers, following a fire at its plant last year.

Although OSHACampus 10 hr training and OSHACampus 30 hr training (both online training) are now pre-employment requirements, many workers are still exposed to unnecessary worksite hazards because of employer negligence, ignorance, or plain disregard of applicable safety protocols.

An investigation by OSHA discovered many fire and explosion hazards caused by missing protective devices in the transport system, the dust-collection duct, and the conveyor systems that could have prevented fires, embers, and sparks from propagating across the system. OSHA also noted the accumulation of combustible wood dust throughout the plant, as well as the use of unsafe equipment to vacuum combustible dust.

"While it is fortunate that no one was killed in this conflagration, there is no excuse for the employer's failure to effectively minimize and address clearly recognized hazards that could kill or disable workers in a catastrophic incident," stressed Rosemarie Ohar, the OSHA area director for New Hampshire.

OSHA consequently issued two repeat citations against Wood Pellet LLC with $140,000 in fines for its failure to maintain a workplace without fire and explosion hazards, and for using unapproved electrical equipments to vacuum combustible dust. In addition, a serious citation carrying a $7,000 fine was also issued for the company in allowing the accumulation of combustible dust on equipment and surfaces all over its facility. Meanwhile, following an accident in November last year that resulted in a worker’s death, OSHA filed three citations against Adams Thermal Systems Inc., an engine-cooling-systems manufacturing facility in Canton, S.D., for willful safety violations that gravely compromised the safety of some of its workers.

"Despite having full awareness of the hazardous conditions and potential for employees to be injured by machinery used in the workplace, the employer failed to take suitable action to ensure employee safety," lamented Tom Deutscher, the OSHA area director in Bismarck, N.D. "OSHA is committed to protecting workers on the job, especially when employers fail to do so."

According to OSHA, the company failed to do the following: develop energy-control procedures, provide machine guarding, and effectively educate employees to recognize hazardous energy and to exercise adequate safety precautions. The violations were considered willful, compelling OSHA to place Adams Thermal Systems in its Severe Violator Enforcement Program, which requires targeted follow-up inspections to ensure the violator is complying with the law. OSHA revealed that Adams Thermal Systems had been inspected four times previously by OSHA due to violations resulting in severe injuries, including an accidental amputation of fingers, of employees in separate incidents.