Accident: 170740005 - Exposed To Chemicals

At approximately 9:15 a.m. on August 1, 1997, Employee #1, of Paramount Farms, Lost Hills, CA, was in an almond hopper located over the hand sorting area in building #48 . He was stripping the paint from the hopper using Lifteeze paint and varnish remover, which contained methylene chloride, methanol, acetone, toluene, and wax. Employee #1 was overcome by the fumes in the small space and fell unconscious. He was found by coworkers, who removed him from the hopper. Medical aid was sought, and Employee #1 was airlifted to Kern Medical Center, Bakersfield. He was later transferred to University Hospital Burn Center, Fresno.

agriculture, hopper, chemical, toxic fumes, methylene chloride, acetone, toluene, unconsciousness, inhalation, work rules

Accident: 201580024 - Dies Of Burns After Acetone Explosion

Employee #1, a painter with more than 20 years of experience and the owner of a sole proprietorship, sprayed a crab hold on a fishing vessel with between 3 and 5 gallons of acetone to settle the sandblasting dust and to dry the surface before painting. He then used a fan without a duct to blow air into the manhole opening in the hatch for an hour before entering the space. When Employee #1 turned on the shop vac, the acetone vapors in the space ignited, resulting in a fire and explosion that blew the hatch cover off the hold. He sustained third-degree burns over 90 percent of his body, and his polyester coveralls were burned off. Employee #1 was transported to the hospital, where he died the following day.

vapor, ship, spray painting, acetone, flammable vapors, fire, explosion, work rules, burn, ventilation

Accident: 170378590 - Exposed To Acetone And Ethanol During Drug Arrest

On June 17, 1996, Employee #1, of the East Palo Alto (CA) Police Department, was exposed to a small quantity of acetone and ethanol after a few ounces of these chemicals were seized during arrests at a methamphetamine washing lab. Employee #1 was taken to San Mateo General Hospital, where she was examined and released.

acetone, chemical, chemical vapor, inhalation, vapor, ethanol

Accident: 14306393 - Four Employees Burned In Flash Fire

Employees #1 through #4 were using a wet-dry vacuum cleaner to remove water from the hull of a 44 ft fiberglass yacht. They then removed any excess water with acetone. Apparently an employee turned on the wet-dry vacuum cleaner and a spark ignited the flammable acetone vapors that had accumulated in the hull. A flash fire occurred and Employees #1 through #4 were severely burned; Employees #1, #2, and #4 were hospitalized.

burn, acetone, explosion, boat, fire, flammable vapors, gas, cleaning, work rules

Accident: 14221113 - Dies From Possible Overexposure To Fumes

On September 15, 1994, a crew of 5 Belmont employees were assigned to the N-5 area at Rohm and Haas; acetone cyanohydrin is produced in the area. The employees were installing tubing on an ammonia analyzer that was not operational. It is believed that Employee #1 came into contact with acetone cyanohydrin while working on the platform where the ammonia analyzer was located. He died.

overexposure, respirator, inhalation, toxic fumes, acetone

Accident: 14492367 - Employee Burned To Death When Glue Vapors Ignite

At approximately 12:30 p.m. on August 16, 1994, employees were applying a glue containing hexane, acetone, toluene, and methyl ethyl ketone onto wallpaper in the basement of a single family house in Leonia, NJ. Unknown sources ignited the glue's flammable organic vapors, causing an explosion and fire. Employee #1 burned to death and three coworkers were injured.

flammable vapors, burn, fire, explosion, glue, mek, hexane, toluene, acetone

Accident: 909465 - Burned In Flash Fire

Employee #1 was performing her normal job duties of operating an acetone polishing line. Employee #1 shut down the line to take a break. On her way to that break, she picked up several screwdriver handles that had earlier missed their intended bucket when automatically dropped from a machine. When Employee #1 dropped them in the bucket, a flash fire occurred, burning Employee #1. She received a 1st degree burn to her left forearm. Everything electrical in the work area was explosion proof. The bucket was constructed of cardboard with two plastic liners.

fire, burn, acetone, forearm, flammable vapors

Accident: 14372577 - Severely Burned When Vapors Ignite

To clean off paint residue, 15 gallons of acetone were spread on a cement floor for use with a Power Boss floor buffer SB22, serial #1000385. A spark ignited vapors, which then exploded. Employee #1 sustained burns over 85 percent of his body. He was hospitalized.

explosion, burn, vapor, acetone, spark, cleaning, flammable vapors

Accident: 170611461 - Employer Suffers Burns In Vapor Explosion

At approximately 12:10 p.m. on December 1, 1993, an employer was using a large floor buffer and acetone to strip and scrub the shellac of the Mexican floor tile inside a small men's public restroom when a blast occurred and burned both his hands. The employer stated that the door was closed and the vapor was pulled up by the vent fan, which had a disconnected exhaust tube, into the water heater above the restroom. He then saw a orange and yellow flame shoot straight down from the fan, like a burst from a flame thrower, and explode as it hit the floor. The thermostat switch on the electric water heater had sparked the flame. The owner of the Hand Building Maintenance Company was injured. Neither of his 2 employees at the site was injured. The company was contracted by the complex property manager to refinish the lavatory floor, and the employer was doing the job by himself on the first day when the blast occurred. There was no employee accident-related violation; however, the employer was found in violation of 8CCR 3203(a) and 5194(e) (1) and citations were issued as general penalties.

explosion, hand, water heater, work rules, fire, acetone, cleaning, burn, flammable vapors, fan

Accident: 170733042 - Injured In Gas Explosion While Sorting Drums

At about 6:45 a.m. on November 16, a gas explosion occurred at Ditty Containers, Inc. The employer recycles used 55-gallon drums. Employee #1 had been working as a laborer with Ditty Containers for 5 months. On the day of the accident, Employee #1 was performing his usual work assignment of sorting the dirty drums from the clean ones. To accomplish this, Employee #1 had to check the inside of every drum with the use of a makeshift electric light probe. As he inserted the probe inside a drum that previously contained acetone, an explosion occurred. The employer was cited for violation of T8CCR5418(c) for allowing a source of ignition inside the drum. Other violations were observed and the employer was cited for those general violations.

explosion, acetone, flammable vapors, vapor, drum, work rules

Accident: 170727382 - Using Torch Near Flammable Liquid Burns Body

At approximately 9:00 a.m. on August 2, 1993, Employee #1, a mechanic, was burned in an acetone flash fire. Resin had coagulated inside the resin pump on the filament winding unit due to nonuse and it would not pump. Employee #1 removed the pump and took it to the drum storage area to disassemble it. He tried to remove the pump's cylinder, but it was stuck. He tried dissolving the resin with acetone, but he was unsuccessful. So he moved the quart container of acetone with its lid approximately 5 feet away from the pump (which was leaning against two full 55-gallon drums of flammable styrene monomer) but did not replace the lid on the quart can. Employee #1 then attempted to free the cylinder by heating it with a propane torch. The resin and the acetone residue caught fire in the pump top. Employee #1 went to get a fire extinguisher and as he passed the acetone container it "flashed." Employee #1 suffered burns on his right arm, shoulder, and face. The accident was caused by the combination of an open flame torch in use on the same site as an uncovered container of flammable liquid.

work rules, burn, styrene, acetone, propane torch, mechanic, cleaning, arm, shoulder, face

Accident: 14216311 - Fire Fighters Suffer Exposure To Hazardous Material

At 6:30 a.m. on November 10, 1992, the Stratford (CT) Fire Department arrived at Micro Etch, Inc., to suppress a fire and isolate the scene. The first units to arrive were informed by the commander that hazardous materials were present. A plant employee who had been trapped was successfully rescued by the first engine, ladder, and rescue companies on the scene. A brief interior attack was attempted and called off by the incident commander. During outside suppression activities that were downwind of the fire, some fire fighters apparently did not wear SCBA, possibly incurring airborne exposure to hydrochloric acid, ferric chloride, and acetone. The IC pulled fire fighters back to defensive operations and summoned the Lower Fairfield County HazMat Team and STCT DEP. Employees #1 through #14 sought treatment either independently or at the recommendation of the EMS or the union. None was hospitalized. This emergency clearly comes within the scope of 1910.120 (q). Because abatements were still in effect for previous violations of 1910.120, 134, 156, the department was not found to be in violation of Conn. OSHA standards.

fire, emergency response, fire fighter, acetone, hydrochloric acid, respirator, work rules, scba