The tragedy occurred at the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India, and killed thousands of people. The CSB’s safety message examines recent incidents in the US three decades after this deadly event and discusses how more must be done to prevent similar accidents from occurring.
The video entitled “Reflections on Bhopal After Thirty Years” chronicles how on December 2, 1984, water inadvertently entered a storage tank containing more than 80,000 lb of methyl isocyanate, or MIC, which reacts react violently with water. A subsequent runaway reaction overheated the tank and resulted in a massive toxic gas release. A dense, lethal cloud drifted over the city of Bhopal exposing hundreds of thousands of people to deadly MIC and other chemicals.
An estimated 3,800 people died immediately, and tens of thousands were injured. Eventually thousands more died from toxic gas-related illnesses—the release eventually killed tens of thousands of people.
In the wake of Bhopal, Congress enacted new laws to increase chemical emergency preparedness and to require companies to develop process safety and risk management programs, and to report their worst-case release scenarios. Congress also established the Chemical Safety Board to independently investigate chemical accidents and recommend measures to prevent such catastrophic accidents. But despite these actions in the 1990’s, the United States continues to experience serious chemical accidents.
In the video, CSB Chairperson Rafael Moure-Eraso says, “Process safety management regulations are in need of reform. There must be more emphasis on preventing the occurrence of major chemical accidents through safer design. Responding to emergencies and punishing people after the fact are not enough.”
In the past few years, CSB investigations have found deficiencies in design and process safety management similar to those uncovered in Bhopal. The video points out that a 2008 explosion killing two workers and injuring eight others at a pesticide plant in Institute, West Virginia, found that incomplete operator training and procedures similar to Union Carbide’s at Bhopal.
Furthermore, had the Institute plant vessel that exploded taken a different trajectory, pieces of it could have struck piping connected to a storage tank containing 13,700 lb of MIC, potentially causing a large release of the same highly toxic chemical that killed thousands in Bhopal.
The safety message discusses a number of additional accidents currently investigated or previously investigated by the CSB which ultimately could have been prevented had current federal and state regulations focused on preventative measures or continuously reducing process risks.
To enhance safety in the chemical industry, the Board has voted to include “Modernize US Process Safety Management Regulations” on the CSB’s list of most wanted safety improvements.
Chairperson Rafael Moure-Eraso concludes the video with the following call to industry and regulators, “Since Bhopal, both industry and government have increased their efforts to prevent major chemical accidents. But multiple CSB investigations show that much more needs to be done to assure that future tragedies will be avoided.”
How to Implement OSHA’s Globally Harmonized Hazard Communication Standard (GHS)
OSHA has issued a final rule revising its Hazard Communication Standard, aligning it with the United Nations’ globally harmonized system (GHS) for the classification and labeling of hazardous chemicals. This means that virtually every product label, safety data sheet (formerly called “material safety data sheet” or MSDS), and written hazard communication plan must be revised to meet the new standard. Worker training must be updated so that workers can recognize and understand the symbols and pictograms on the new labels as well as the new hazard statements and precautions on safety data sheets.
Raleigh 24-Hour HAZWOPER Training
Cleveland RCRA and DOT Training
Raleigh RCRA, DOT, IATA/IMO, and SARA Training
Cold Temperatures Expose Workers to Risks
Indiana’s varying seasonal weather can make it difficult for Hoosier employers to stay sharp about protecting their employees from weather-related hazards. As winter rolls back around, it brings with it obvious risks, such as icy driving conditions, as well as not so obvious but potentially deadly risks.
With proper preparation, these risks can be minimized or avoided.
Indiana workers who work outside or in poorly insulated structures are at increased risk of suffering cold stress injuries, while those who work in certain types of indoor facilities could be threatened by carbon monoxide (CO) overexposure.
The three most common cold illnesses are frostbite, hypothermia, and trench foot.
Increased exposure to CO is another cold weather hazard. This risk may become more prevalent as facilities close overhead doors to maintain indoor temperatures. CO is an odorless, colorless, and tasteless gas that displaces oxygen and is created whenever something burns. Improperly or poorly vented furnaces, space heaters, and running engines are common contributing factors to CO in workplaces.
Symptoms of overexposure to CO may cause confusion, nausea, headache, fatigue, unconsciousness, and death.
Illnesses related to CO overexposure can be avoided by:
- Installing an effective ventilation system that removes CO from the work area
- Ensuring equipment and appliances are in good working order
- Training employees to recognize and report hazards, unsafe conditions, or symptoms of CO overexposure
Workers should not be permitted to use gasoline-powered engines or tools in enclosed, poorly ventilated areas.
Resources for preventing cold stress include:
Steady Decline in Workplace Injuries and Illnesses
"Today we learned that, in 2013, approximately three million private sector workers in America experienced a serious injury or illness on the job. In this extraordinarily high number, it is easy to focus on the headline and miss the trend line. We are encouraged that the rates continue to decline over the past few years, even during this period of healthy economic growth when we would expect the rate of injuries to rise. The decrease in the injury rate is a product of tireless work by those employers, unions, worker advocates and occupational safety and health professionals all coupled with the efforts of federal and state government organizations that make worker safety and health a high priority each and every day.
"But we cannot ignore those three million workers. The severity of their injuries and illnesses varies widely; some are amputees, some suffer back injuries, while others have to struggle for each breath. Work injuries can instantly pull the rug out from a family striving for a good middle-class life. This is why the work of the Labor Department is so vital, and why the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, along with our partners in both the public and private sector, will maintain our commitment to ensuring that everyone can work in a safe, healthy place."
Interagency Refinery Task Force to Host Northern California Safety Forum
The California Interagency Refinery Task Force will host a Refinery Safety Forum meeting from 6–8 p.m. on December 11 in Richmond, California. This is the first of a series of forums to provide information and promote dialogue on worker and community safety.
The two-hour forum offers an opportunity for the public to obtain facts and insight, ask questions, and discuss how refinery operations impact the community. Translators will be available to translate in Spanish and Lao. The meeting will be held at the Richmond City Council Chambers, at 440 Civic Center Plaza, Richmond, California 94804
Participating and planning organizations include local, state, and federal agencies; labor and contractor organizations; refineries; academia; and community and environmental groups.
Topics of the meeting will include:
- Emergency Warning and Notification Systems
- Air Monitoring Systems
- Transportation of Petroleum by Rail and Other Means
More safety forums are being planned on related topics in Northern California and other areas of the state where refineries are located.
The Interagency Refinery Task Force works collaboratively to achieve the highest level of safety for refinery workers and local communities to prevent incidents, and prepare for and effectively respond to emergencies. Following a fire at the Chevron refinery in Richmond in August 2012, Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. directed CalEPA to create the Interagency Refinery Task Force that includes ten state agencies, US EPA, and local agencies from areas of the state that contain refineries.
CSB Recommends Improvements in Process Safety Management Regulations
Over the last two decades, the CSB has made a number of recommendations related to OSHA’s PSM program and EPA’s Risk Management Program (RMP), many of which have not been fully implemented. By adding the modernizing of US process safety management regulations to the CSB’s Most Wanted Safety Improvement list, the agency is identifying this issue as one of the board’s most important recommendations-related goals.
CSB Chairperson Rafael Moure-Eraso said, “As Chairperson of the CSB I see this as an important opportunity to advance national process safety management reform by advocating for this issue as part of the board’s Most Wanted Chemical Safety Improvements Program. My hope is that reform will help to prevent future catastrophic accidents.”
The CSB notes that despite some positive improvements in PSM regulations in the US, regulations have undergone little reform since their inception in the 1990s. Of particular interest are the board’s recent investigations of major refinery incidents that found that PSM and RMP, although written as performance-based regulations, appear to function primarily as reactive and activity-based regulatory frameworks that require extensive rulemaking to modify. This potentially results in stagnating risk levels, even as industry-recommended best practices and technology continue to advance in the US and overseas.
Specifically, the CSB’s investigations of recent major refinery accidents found that there was no requirement to reduce risks to As Low As Reasonably Practicable (ALARP); there was no mechanism to ensure continuous safety improvement; no requirement to implement inherent safety or the hierarchy of controls; that there should be an increased role for workers and worker representatives in process safety management; and that there needs to be a more proactive, technically qualified regulator.
As a result of these findings, the CSB made recommendations at the federal, state, and local levels to prevent major incidents by adopting a more rigorous regulatory system that requires covered facilities to continuously reduce major hazard risks.
CSB Board Member Mark Griffon said, “Modernizing PSM regulations is an issue rooted in critical safety recommendations made over the last two decades to prevent recurrence of catastrophic industrial accidents. Recent activities have provided the board with a unique opportunity to advocate for these much needed reforms. ”
In particular, President Obama’s August 1, 2013, Executive Order 13650, Improving Chemical Facility Safety and Security has resulted in both OSHA and the EPA issuing Requests for Information (RFI), and both agencies may soon initiate rulemaking to revise the existing regulations. The CSB submitted a comprehensive response to each RFI detailing needed improvements to the existing regulations, which are supported by a number of CSB ongoing and completed investigations.
For PSM, the CSB recommended that OSHA:
- Expand the rule’s coverage to include the oil and gas exploration and production sector
- Cover reactive chemical hazards
- Add additional management system elements to include the use of leading and lagging indicators to drive process safety performance and provide stop work authority to employees;
- Update existing Process Hazard Analysis requirements to include the documented use of inherently safer systems, hierarchy of controls, damage mechanism hazard reviews, and sufficient and adequate safeguards
- Develop more explicit requirements for facility/process siting and human factors, including fatigue
For RMP, in addition to PSM program related enhancements mentioned above, the CSB recommended that EPA:
- Expand the rule’s coverage to include reactive chemicals, high and/or low explosives, and ammonium nitrate as regulated substances and to change enforcement policies for retail facilities
- Enhance development and reporting of worst case and alternate release scenarios
- Add new prevention program requirements, including automated detection and monitoring, contractor selection and oversight, public disclosure of information, and, for petroleum refineries, attributes of goal-setting regulatory approaches
Dr. Moure-Eraso concluded, “The CSB has a statutory, Congressionally mandated task to address the sufficiency of OSHA and EPA regulations. That is a key obligation of the CSB, and I intend to continue pursuing this mandate vigorously.”
Affordable Exteriors Faces $140,000 in Fines for Exposing Workers to Dangerous Falls
The Omaha-based company has a lengthy history of violating OSHA standards. As a result of this incident, Affordable Exteriors has been placed in the Severe Violator Enforcement Program.
"Affordable Exteriors clearly hasn't made worker safety a priority. It has consistently broken the law by failing to provide fall protection to those employees working on roofs," said Marcia Drumm, OSHA's acting regional administrator in Kansas City, Missouri. "Since 2005, the company repeatedly refused to protect employees and provide proof that it fixed hazards found during OSHA inspections."
OSHA observed workers framing new residential units at heights of 9 to 18 feet on a steep section of roof without required fall protection. The work occurred on a home in the 3900 block of North 191st Street in Elkhorn. Two willful citations were cited for failure to provide basic safety equipment, such as guardrails, safety nets, warning-line systems, or personal fall arrest systems. OSHA also found that the workers had inadequate training in fall safety.
OSHA cited the company five times in the past 10 years for exposing workers to fall hazards. Affordable Exteriors repeatedly failed to correct safety deficiencies. The company also failed to pay penalties assessed from previous violations, which exceed $51,000. Additionally, Affordable Exteriors owner Rich Tiller failed to provide information requested during the June 17, 2014, inspection and only complied after OSHA initiated subpoena enforcement action.
A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirement, or with plain indifference to employee safety and health.
The page offers fact sheets, posters, and videos that vividly illustrate various fall hazards and appropriate preventive measures. OSHA standards require that an effective form of fall protection be in use when workers perform construction activities 6 feet or more above the next lower level.
Florida Long-Haul Truck Driver Declared Imminent Hazard to Public Safety
The US Department of Transportation’s Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) has declared Florida-licensed truck driver James H. Patterson to be an imminent hazard to public safety and ordered him not to operate any commercial motor vehicle in interstate commerce.
On November 13, a tractor-trailer operated by Patterson in Rockingham County, Virginia, crossed the centerline and overturned onto a passenger vehicle, killing the driver. State law enforcement authorities have charged Patterson with involuntary manslaughter, driving while his driving privilege was suspended, and possession of a controlled substance. The imminent hazard order finds that Patterson violated federal hours-of-service regulations, used a hand-held cell phone while operating a commercial motor vehicle, and was speeding.
“Safety must be the top priority of every driver, particularly commercial drivers who operate large trucks and buses on our public roadways,” said US Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx. “Recklessly jeopardizing the safety of the motoring public by violating critical federal safety regulations will not be tolerated.”
“There will be no pause, no diminishment of our continuing, vigorous efforts to prevent unsafe commercial drivers from getting behind the wheel and endangering the public,” said FMCSA Acting Administrator Scott Darling. “Every truck and bus company and every driver they employ should have no doubt that we will vigorously enforce all federal safety regulations to the fullest extent possible by law.”
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