OSHA Proposes $51,000 in Fines Against David H. Koch Theater in New York for Asbestos, Fall and Crushing Hazards

Image via WikipediaThe Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited the David H. Koch Theater, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in Manhattan, for alleged repeat and serious violations of workplace health and safety standards. The theater faces a total of $51,000 in proposed fines, chiefly for asbestos, fall and crushing hazards identified during an OSHA inspection prompted by worker complaints.

OSHA's inspection found that employees of the theater and of outside contractors had not been informed of the presence of asbestos-containing and potentially asbestos-containing materials in the theater's promenade area and in nearby electrical closets. The materials had not been labeled and asbestos warning signs had not been posted.
In addition, an exit door was stuck and unable to be used, and a portable fire extinguisher was not mounted. As these conditions were similar to those cited by OSHA during a 2009 inspection of the theater, they resulted in the agency issuing the theater four repeat citations with $45,000 in proposed fines. A repeat violation is issued when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years.
"The recurrence of these conditions is disturbing," said Kay Gee, OSHA's Manhattan area director. "For the health and safety of its employees as well as outside contractors, the theater must take effective steps to identify and permanently eliminate these and other hazards identified during this latest OSHA inspection."
OSHA also found that, due to a lack of guarding, theater employees were exposed to falls into the orchestra pit when the stage was raised above the pit, and to being struck or crushed by the stage when it descended into the pit. These conditions, plus the use of temporary wiring in place of permanent lighting in the promenade area, resulted in OSHA also issuing the theater three serious citations with $6,000 in proposed fines. A serious citation is issued when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
"One means of eliminating hazards such as these is for employers to establish an illness and injury prevention program, in which workers and management jointly work to identify and eliminate hazardous conditions on a continual basis," said Robert Kulick, OSHA's regional administrator in New York.
The theater has 15 business days from receipt of the citations and proposed penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The inspection was conducted by OSHA's Manhattan Area Office, telephone 212-620-3200. To report workplace accidents, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742).

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Carl Potter's Safety Code of Conduct

Scaffolding improperly installed missing mud sills, etc.

Mr. Carl Potter is a safety speaker and his website is an excellant resource for information regarding occupational safety and health.  We have received many of his articles and writings, and have always found them informative.  To emphasize this point, please click on the title above to read his latest post regarding setting up a Safety Code of Conduct and the reason why employees typically don't follow safety rules.  Our experience and discussions with many of you, has led us to the same conclusions.  We agree with Mr. Potter come up with your own Safety Code of Conduct and decide to be safe when performing your work.  

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Gulf Oil Spill - Knowledge Gained.

Image by lumis via Flickr Just finished and posted the Summer 2010 Future Focus newsletter.  I discuss the Gulf Oil Spill and knowledge gained on how the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) handled this emergency.

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Confined Space Entry Mistakes Caused Tarrytown Tragedy?

OSHA has specific requirements and rules before entering confined spaces. Air testing and training are part of the requirements.

The death of two men in Tarrytown are still being investigated, however, indications are that the men died when they entered into a sewer system manhole and were overcome by the gases or the lack of air in the area.  Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and  the New York State Department of Labor under Public Employee Safety and Health (PESH) both regulate entries into confined spaces.  These entries require a permit system which is the equivalent of a checklist that is required to be completed by a supervisor before anyone enters the confined space.  One of the most important parts of the checklist is the requirement to test the air in the space before entry to determine the contaminants in the space.  As outsiders looking in, we could assume oxygen deficiency, methane, and hydrogen sulfide at least.  All three should have been tested before entry was made.  News reports already have told us the space was deficient of oxygen (14%), normal air has 21% oxygen.  Future Environment Designs performs confined space entry training and we train workers that at 14% workers would experience increased respiration and poor judgment.  We also train workers that the attendant should never make an entry (for rescue or any other purpose) until they are relieved by another attendant.  Our condolences go out to the family and the community of these workers.  It is a shame that this accident could have been prevented.

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OSHA Publishes Final Rule On Cranes And Derricks In Construction

Crane in Venice, Italy.  FED's training at your convenience will travel to where you need the training.

Some people would say its about time the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) revised the Cranes and Derricks in Construction standard.  The last standard was issued in 1971 and considering in 2007 a number of crane accidents happened across the country including the two crane accidents that happened in New York City.  It is not surprising that OSHA finally finished the standard.  The rule becomes effective in 90 days after August 9, 2010.  Significant requirements in this new rule include: a pre-erection inspection of tower crane parts; use of synthetic slings in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions during assembly/disassembly work; assessment of ground conditions; qualification or certification of crane operators; and procedures for working in the vicinity of power lines.

Several provisions have been modified from the proposed rule. For example:

• Employers must comply with local and state operator licensing requirements which meet the minimum criteria specified in § 1926.1427.
• Employers must pay for certification or qualification of their currently uncertified or unqualified operators.
• Written certification tests may be administered in any language understood by the operator candidate.
• When employers with employees qualified for power transmission and distribution are working in accordance with the power transmission and distribution standard (§ 1910.269), that employer will be considered in compliance with this final rule's requirements for working around power lines.
• Employers must use a qualified rigger for rigging operations during assembly/disassembly.
• Employers must perform a pre-erection inspection of tower cranes.

The final rule was designed to work with state and local regulations.  Interesting change from what OSHA typically does.

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Clearing Pipes With Natural Gas, A Common But Deadly Construction Practice

Image by Getty Images via @daylife

In Middletown, Connecticut on Febuary 7, 2010 an explosion caused the death of 6 workers building a power plant for Kleen Energy Systems.  The article above discusses the findings of an investigation of the cause of the explosion.  The findings found that a common construction practice of clearing pipes with natural gas was the cause of the explosion.  The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) investigation is still ongoing.  However, it appears the common practice of clearing pipes with natural gas is also a common cause of explosions at other construction sites.  In two other sites this practice has caused explosions that have killed 4 and 6, previously.  The article implies that this practice is unregulated, which I find hard to believe.  I guess we will find out once OSHA finishes its investigation.

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BP's Other Toxic Legacy: 'Decades of Misery' for Gulf Health

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BP's <i>Other</i> Toxic Legacy: 'Decades of Misery' for Gulf Health

As we feared, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) again is messing up worker protection under the memorandum of understanding (MOU). This time it didn't take long for people to start being concerned about their exposure to chemicals. This article from Esquire Magazine's Politics Blog shows that OSHA really doesn't have a handle on the exposure of the workers down there. In addition, where is the American Industrial Hygiene Association in all of this? I have not heard about a position or any recommendations from this organization regarding what is going on in the Gulf regarding worker protection. So here we are again another disaster and another OSHA MOU, which means allow workers to develop illnesses (from chemical expsoures) because these aren't reported the same way accidents are (slips, trips, falls, etc). I'm sure OSHA will brag about zero accidents like they did at 9/11 but will ignore the illnesses developed. Note the recent news articles about the $700 million settlement that will be paid to thousands of 9/11 responders exposed to toxic World Trade Cener dust, that OSHA could have and should have prevented from happening.

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CDC NIOSH Science Blog: Mad as a Hatter: Mercury and Other Occupational Hazards at the Movies

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CDC NIOSH Science Blog: Mad as a Hatter: Mercury and Other Occupational Hazards at the Movies
I recently saw the movie at the Deer Park IMAX theather in 3D, with my family. It was a visually stunning movie and the storyline was excellant and very different from the one most of us are familar with. The CDC NIOSH science blog discusses the occupational issues that led to the term Mad as a hatter hence leading to Johnny Depp's character in the movie. What was the occupational safety and health issue? Well most people probably know by now that it was mercury exposure or mercury poisoning.  Hatters used mercury to change fur into felt.  Since these areas were poorly ventilated the exposure levels must have been tremendous.

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Crane Failure Case Heading to Court

Its amazing that the OSHA investigation found no violations.  However, the Manhattan DA found enough evidence to bring manslaughter charges against J. Lomma, T. Varganyi, JF Lomma Inc, and NY Crane.  Key quote from the article was "Equipment owners may be held personally liable—even if safety regulators in their official investigation are unable to find code violations."  Will the threat of criminal charges actually start CEOs thinking about safety first.

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Results of Northeast Regional Industrial Hygiene Conference

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On December 4, 2009, we attended the Northeast Regional Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition of the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) sponsored the Philadelphia Section of the AIHA. The title of the conference was "The Business of EHS – A New Team Dynamic" for the list of speakers and their biographies visit http://www.philaaiha.com/Newsletters/2009NEIHCBrochure.pdf. The program was professional and interesting, though the focus of the presenters was on manufacturing and industrial applications. This left very little for someone focused in construction safety or indoor environmental issues. The presentations on the environmental health and safety (EHS) perspectives on the impact of the global supply chain, and business metrics (building EHS value and cost-benefit analysis for EHS) were advanced level presentations. Our favorite presentation was the first one on “Staying Safe While Making Money” by Ms. Maureen Modica, CIH, CSP of the United States Mint.
Mr. Aaron Trippler’s “Washington Buzz” presentation during lunch reinforced what we heard from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) representative at the PDC (see our Wednesday, November 25, 2009 blog). OSHA’s current budget is up 10% leading to hiring of 200 new inspectors for enforcement. Other interesting news was NIOSH’s focus on nanotech, risk management, and aerosol transmissible diseases indicates new research information will be available on these issues in the future.
The vendor exposition hall was very good and we thank 3M for providing us with two pair of safety glasses for our safety classes(one called Lightvision 2-LED Plano Eyewear (debating using this for work around the house) and the other called Nitrous CCS with hearing protection providing a noise reduction rating of 25 decibels, both excellent ideas). We also thank Nilfisk-Advance America Inc. for providing us with a new vacuum cleaner catalog for our asbestos classes.
Though the regional this year was interesting, the lack of a balanced program left individuals with our background in construction safety and indoor air quality with very little to bring back home. Some of you would ask why attend a meeting that had so little to offer, the topics were publicized ahead of time. Well first, Mr. Trippler’s presentation always gives us an idea on the pulse of what is happening in Washington, DC on the environmental safety and health front. Second the vendor exposition hall is always interesting to see what services and products the various companies in the area are offering. Saving the best for last, the most important reason is to network and meet with old friends and acquaintances and meet new people who are in different areas/regions of the industrial hygiene field. It is a lot of fun catching up with people you may only see at this event. It was a pleasure seeing and discussing different issues with Mr. Jack Springsteen, Dr. Jack Caravanos, Ms. Amy Gordon, Mrs. Debra Gul Haffner, and many others. The special treat this year was talking with Mr. Dave Robbins, who was in town from Alaska. Though the regional, this year, did not provide much information for the construction and indoor environment people, the networking opportunities are probably the best reasons to attend the Regional each year.

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