Blood On a Shop Floor, Again.........$600,000 Fine

Chalk body outlines remind the APSB of what children draw in the Summer on sidewalks, driveways, patios, etc. One child lays down, while the other traces the body of a child laying on the ground. Afterwards the children make a face on the outline, draw on clothes and laugh about their artwork. 

It is the hope of the APSB that the above photo will be remembered by the reader of something so simple can also be so sad.  The following story is about how a firm had two similar workplace deaths over 10 years apart. 

Two chalk body outlines for two workers who died in the same manner...

In December 2011 an Australian government safety court fined an aluminium company $600,000 for the death of a worker in the Fall of 2007. As well filed criminal charges against the manager(s) of the company. It is one of the largest fines ever levied on a company for a workplace death in Australia. 

The company stored cases of aluminium products in bulk storage racks at their warehouse. The stack that crushed the worker was four metres long, 3 metres high and weighed more than one ton. The company did not have vertical bollards, or any vertical means of support or segregation, between the stacks in each rack. Two workers were using a crane to move material. One worker walked between the stacks to retrieve a sling attached to the crane.

Almost immediately a damaged aluminium pack fell, hitting the worker at chest and chin level, pinning him in an upright position against another stack. The worker was alive at this point. He raised his arm to try to protect himself from falling aluminium packs, weighing between 130 pounds and 660 pounds. Up to 10 fell.The crane man screamed for help and six other workmen lifted and pushed the cases off the pinned worker. While they waited for an ambulance, plant manager tended to the injured worker, but by then he had no pulse. 

That was the second company worker to die in the same manner. Eleven years earlier a worker died at a different company location when a stack of aluminium cases collapsed too.

In June 2006, the company health and safety officer informed the government safety department that the company was reviewing its racking systems at all sites.

Four months later, a company inspector noted "unsafe bulk storage" practices at some sites and issued instructions for concrete-bolted vertical supports. Those instructions were not completed in time to prevent the Fall of 2007 accident that resulted in a worker dying.

This story reminded the APSB of a site visit in the U.S.A. That facilities' cast house blew up back in the 1950's. Several workers died, and the cast house was destroyed. APSB was asked to tour the facility. The EHS officer was also the security guard at the front gate....

The company managers mentioned that they used to have a picture of the aftermath of the 1950's explosion. That picture was displayed in such a place that workers would see it every day as a reminder of the dangers that they dealt. Unfortunately, that photo was taken down years ago. 

APSB told the managers (none who were around when the cast house blew up) that it was not if an explosion would happen but when another molten aluminium steam explosion (most likely a force 3 explosion) would occur. The plant took immediate corrective action on all items that were not aligned to the best industry standards. APSB ended the tour by suggesting to the managers that the photo of the aftermath of the 1950's cast house explosion should be hung up again.

Today's global recession has brought upon an accelerated attrition of workers retiring and being replaced by new hires with little or no experience in the aluminium industry. It is a challenge for all of us to stress the importance of safety in the cast house, smelter, rolling mill, etc. All of us, all of us.