"The death toll hits three ...."

The crushing of scrap into bales is a common practice. Unfortunately, there is a hidden hazard depending on what is being crushed. Here is a recent tragedy highlighting the hazard of compacting/crushing aluminium scrap.

The death toll from a fire at a scrap warehouse at (town and region omitted) reached three on Thursday after an injured succumbed to burn injuries.

Superintendent of Police, who is also chief of District Police Office, said a 60-year-old woman (town name omitted), who was airlifted to a local Burn Centre, died while undergoing treatment.

A 55-year-old of (town omitted) and a 58-year-old man and a 30-year-old woman of (town omitted) are receiving treatment at the centre.

Two people died and four others were injured, two critically, when the scrap warehouse caught fire on Wednesday. A man aged 30, of (town omitted), died in the incident. The identity of another deceased is yet to be ascertained.

The injured were airlifted to (the capital) by (country) Army. The fire reportedly broke out while a worker crushed aluminium deodorant cans, which are highly flammable.

We pray for the deceased workers’ family, friends, and coworkers. We pray that the injured workers recover fully from their burns. We wonder whether the workers were wearing fire resistant clothing.

We have sadly reported similar incidents with fatalities involving the crushing of aerosol canisters. It is recommended that any compacting machinery involved in this task be install outside and not in an enclosed facility. Careful consideration should be given to where workers are located when this machinery is operating.

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