Tag Archives: Citation

Pacific Topsoils Fined $199,000 for Safety Violations Related to Death of 19-year-old

The Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) has cited an Everett company for multiple safety violations related to the death of a worker last July. Nineteen-year-old Bradley Hogue was killed by a rotating auger while working inside the hopper of a bark-blower truck at a Duvall home.

Pacific Topsoils has been cited for two willful and 14 serious violations, with penalties totaling $199,000. The employer has also been identified as a severe violator and will be subject to follow-up inspections to determine if the conditions still exist in the future.

“The loss of this young man’s life is a tragedy that could have been prevented if the employer had followed basic safety and health rules that protect workers from moving machinery,” said L&I Assistant Director Anne Soiza. “We hope this citation and the penalties serve as a deterrent so that nothing like this ever happens again.”

Following the July incident that killed Hogue, L&I issued a bark and mulch-blower hazard alert to warn others in the landscaping business of the danger of working in hoppers while the equipment is running.

The L&I investigation found that Pacific Topsoils’ workers were regularly assigned to clear jams in the bark-blower truck hoppers while the hoppers were operating. This exposed them to three very hazardous elements: a floor conveyor belt, two rotating-screw conveyors (angled augers) and a rotating stir rod. Exposure to any of these parts of the equipment could potentially result in entanglement, causing severe crushing injuries or death.

Working in and around this type of extremely hazardous equipment requires “lockout/tagout” safety procedures to prevent machinery from starting up or moving during service or maintenance by workers.

The employer was cited for two willful violations. The first was issued for not ensuring lockout/tagout procedures were regularly used; it carries a penalty of $56,000. The second willful violation was issued for not training the employees in the proper use of those critical procedures; it carries a $52,000 penalty.

Additionally, working in the hopper of bark-blower trucks exposed workers to “confined space” hazards. Confined spaces, like hoppers, are areas large enough to accommodate a worker, but aren’t designed for continuous employee occupancy and have limited ways to enter or exit.

When a confined space has one or more hazardous characteristics, such as moving machinery or a potential for engulfment that may harm workers, it’s considered a “permit-required” confined space. That means employers must control access to the area and use a permit system to prevent unauthorized entry. Anyone working in or around a permit-required confined space must be trained and there must be safety measures and rescue procedures in place.

Twelve of the serious violations cited were for failure to implement safe work practices when entering a permit-required confined space. Two other serious violations were cited for not having an effective accident prevention program and for failure to document lockout/tagout procedures. Each of these violations carries a $6,500 penalty.

A willful violation can be issued when L&I has evidence of plain indifference, a substitution of judgment or an intentional disregard to a hazard or rule. A serious violation exists in a workplace if there is a substantial probability that worker death or serious physical harm could result from a hazardous condition.

The employer has 15 working days to appeal the citation. Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers’ compensation supplemental pension fund, helping workers and families of those who have died on the job.

For a copy of the citation, please contact L&I Public Affairs at 360-902-5413. 

Major Asbestos Violations Result in Fines for Two WA Companies

The Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) has cited two employers for violations that exposed workers to asbestos during the demolition of a Seattle apartment building. Asbestos can cause cancer and other fatal illnesses.

An L&I investigation into the Seattle project found a total of 19 willful and serious safety and health violations. As a result, together the businesses have been fined a total of $379,100.

Partners Construction Inc., of Federal Way, was cited for a total of 14 willful and serious violations and fined $291,950. Asbestos Construction Management Inc., of Bonney Lake, was fined $87,150 for five willful and serious violations.

The violations were for asbestos exposure to workers, asbestos debris left on site and other violations that occurred during demolition of an apartment building in the Fremont neighborhood. The three-story, five-unit apartment building was originally constructed with “popcorn” ceilings, a white substance containing asbestos fibers, as well as asbestos sheet vinyl flooring.

Asbestos is an extremely hazardous material that can lead to asbestosis, a potentially fatal disease, as well as mesothelioma and lung cancer. Removal of asbestos-containing building materials must be done by a certified abatement contractor who follows safety and health rules to protect workers and the public from exposure to asbestos. The contractor must also ensure proper removal and disposal of the asbestos materials.

Partners Construction Inc., a certified asbestos abatement contractor at the time, was hired by the building owner to remove the asbestos before the apartment building was demolished.

After several weeks, Partners provided the building owner with a letter of completion indicating that all asbestos had been removed. When L&I inspectors responded to a worker complaint, the inspectors found that the removal work had not been done and approximately 5,400 square feet of popcorn ceiling remained throughout, as well as asbestos sheet vinyl flooring.

Partners came back to finish the abatement work; however, due to a prior history of willful violations, L&I was in the process of revoking Partners’ certification to do asbestos abatement work. In May, Partners was decertified and went out of business.

A new company, Asbestos Construction Management Inc. (ACM), owned by a family member of the Partners owner, took over the job using essentially the same workers and certified asbestos supervisor as Partners, and sharing the same equipment.

A subsequent L&I inspection of ACM found many of the same violations as in the Partners’ inspection. L&I has initiated decertification action against ACM.

The employers have 15 business days to appeal the citation.

Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers’ compensation supplemental pension fund, helping injured workers and families of those who have died on the job.

For a copy of the citations, please contact Public Affairs at 360-902-5413.

 Photo credit: avlxyz / Foter / CC BY-SA

Wilcox Farms Fatal Silo Collapse – Citations

The Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) issued a press release on June 4th stating that it has cited Wilcox Farms Feedmill, Inc., of Roy for safety violations related to a fatal silo collapse last December. One worker died after he was engulfed in more than 400 tons of corn that spilled out of the silo.

Wilcox Farms issued a press release on February 12, 2014 describing the incident, the emergency response to it and how competitor farms came to the business’s rescue to provide feed for the chickens in the days after the accident. 

“As an employer, especially a family business, it’s the worst thing you could ever imagine happening,” said Andy Wilcox. “The fact that we weren’t able to find Steve for two days was really tough.”

Wilcox has been cited for one “willful” and two “serious” safety violations with total penalties of $67,200. The state investigation found shortcomings in how the company maintained and managed the silo, and inadequate employee training.

A serious violation exists in a workplace if there is a substantial probability that worker death or serious physical harm could result from a hazardous condition. A willful violation can be issued when L&I has evidence of plain indifference, a substitution of judgment or an intentional disregard to a hazard or rule.

The day the 60-foot tall silo collapsed, two employees were working on feedmill operations, which included discharging corn using an auger in the silo. The unloading auger was not working that day, so they opened a side discharge door to allow corn to flow onto the outer portion of the auger. During that process, the silo collapsed and 400-500 tons of corn spilled out, engulfing one worker who was unable to escape.

Worker fatalities are tragic and preventable,” said Anne Soiza, assistant director of L&I’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health. “Our state requires all employers to provide safe and healthy workplaces. We fully expect Wilcox will correct the hazards and practices that haven’t been fixed already to ensure their employees are as safe as can be.”

Wilcox Farms has 15 working days to appeal the citation.

As part of the investigation, L&I hired an engineer to assess the structural integrity of the silo.

The investigation found four instances where Wilcox was not following proper silo operation and maintenance procedures that may have contributed to the collapse. For example, if corn is added or discharged improperly or the silo is overfilled, tons of grain could build up at an uneven rate and then suddenly shift and create instability. The four instances were:

  • A side discharge system was used to unload corn instead of the manufacturer’s standard procedure of withdrawing grain from the vertical center via the auger. The side discharge system was not installed, designed or supplied by an authorized dealer or contractor.

  • The silo was overfilled all the way to the roof and past the maximum fill level of one inch from the top of the vertical walls.

  • The silo had been previously repaired with a patch over a rupture of the wall due to corrosion. The repair was not made with corrugated material and was not done in a way to ensure structural stability. Also, it wasn’t assessed by a structural engineer or the silo manufacturer.

  • There were previous occasions during which the company had simultaneously filled the silo while it was being discharged.

L&I concluded that this was a willful violation with a proposed penalty of $56,000.

The investigation also found two serious violations with proposed penalties of $5,600 each:

  • Employees weren’t trained in specific procedures and safety practices for silo operations and maintenance.

  • The employer did not maintain the silos in accordance with the manufacturer’s maintenance and safety procedures.

Wilcox Farms has 15 working days to appeal the citation. For a copy of the citation, please contact L&I Public Affairs at 360-902-5673.

Penalty money paid as a result of a citation is placed in the workers’ compensation supplemental pension fund, helping workers and families of those who have died on the job.

 

 Photo credit: kirotv.com