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The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Austin Powder Co. with 51 health and safety violations, amounting to a fine of $258,000, at their facility that uses highly hazardous chemicals. This facility produces commercial explosives for construction and mining jobs.The OSHA area director stated, “By disregarding OSHA’s common-sense standards, this employer endangered the facility’s workers. OSHA is committed to protecting workers on the job, especially those exposed to hazardous materials, and educating employers about safety and health regulations.”

Twenty-three serious violations relating to safety management include: failing to correct deficiencies found in compliance audits, failing to have operating procedures address consequences of deviation from operating limits, and not following generally accepted good engineering practices for inspection and testing procedures.

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited American Recycling & Manufacturing Co. Inc. for 18 violations, amounting to $159,400 in fines.The inspection was a result of an accident where an employee’s left hand was amputated by a pop-up saw while he was cutting wood. The incident occurred when another employee accidentally stepped on the machine’s unguarded foot pedal, which activated the saw.

The OSHA area director stated, “This is exactly the type of incident and injury that machine guarding is designed to prevent. Had the foot pedal been properly guarded, this injury would not have occurred. Compounding this hazard is the fact that the employer was aware and did not correct it.”

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Lumus Construction, the company building Hanover’s wind turbine for two violations. The two fines totaled $3,080, but the contractor has already settled with OSHA for $2,420.OSHA reported that the size of the openings on a platform where employees stand high above the ground were too wide. Also, bolts were missing from many places on the turbine ladder.

An employee was working in December when he fell over twenty feet into the turbine; multiple rescue agencies worked to get him to the ground and to the hospital. This employee’s injuries caused the OSHA investigation.

The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration fined an Idaho construction company for its role in a natural gas explosion in Lewiston.OSHA cited M.L. Albright and Sons for failing to anticipate the change in depth of the natural gas line, which was struck by an excavator bucket. OSHA proposed a $4,900 fine, but subsequently reduced it to $2,450.

M.L. Albright and Sons’ owner stated that the company took numerous steps to determine the depth of the natural gas line. He also stated that workers dug holes twenty to thirty feet apart and believed that the pipe ran in a straight line between them. Unfortunately, the pipe had a spot where it was not buried as deeply because it was placed over other utilities.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Wal-Mart Stores Inc. for two repeat violations of workplace health and safety standards at its Great Falls location. These two violations amount to a proposed fine of $50,000.Wal-Mart employees were exposed to amputation hazards while operating a bread slicer. This repeat violation carries a $25,000 fine because a similar violation was cited at the same location in 2009.

The OSHA area director stated, “The best way to control and prevent amputations caused by stationary machinery is machine safeguarding. This employer had been previously cited for this specific piece of equipment and failed to ensure that corrective actions were taken and maintained.”

Xcel Energy Inc. will pay $150,000 in penalties for workplace safety violations at their power plant near Georgetown. The Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) found these violations after five employees died in a chemical fire at the site.Five California workers died at the Cabin Creek hydroelectric plant on October 2, 2007 after a fire broke out inside a drained water tunnel. Xcel’s statement did not indicate what violations OSHA had found that were acknowledged as part of the settlement.

Xcel released a statement saying, “Immediately after the accident, we conducted an extensive review of our policies and practices and took action to prevent future accidents. We have now reached a fair and reasonable settlement with OSHA in which we have agreed to accept certain citations and to pay $150,000 in assessed penalties. We believe it is in the best interest of all parties involved to move forward and put this matter behind us. We are committed to continuous improvement in every area of our business, and there is nothing more important to us than the safety of our employees, contractors, and the general public.”

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited Accadia Site Contracting Inc. for willful and serious excavation safety violations in Niagara Falls. The violations amount to a proposed fine of $84,000.OSHA witnessed workers in a seven-foot deep excavation that lacked proper protection to prevent cave-ins, as well as the requisite amount of ladders to allow quick and safe exit from the excavation. Also, eight inches of water had accumulated in the bottom of the excavation, making the risk of collapse more likely.

The OSHA area director stated, “An unprotected excavation can turn into a grave in seconds, crushing and burying workers beneath tons of soil before they have an opportunity to react or escape. These workers were fortunate–not lucky, because workplace safety must never be dependent on luck–that they were not injured or killed.”

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited RWS Manufacturing Inc. for twenty eight violations, including willful, repeat and serious violations of workplace health and safety standards. The company manufactures wood shavings for animal bedding.The proposed fines total $233,870. The OSHA area director stated, “The sizable penalties proposed here reflect the breadth and severity of the hazardous conditions found at this plant. Left uncorrected, they exposed workers to the dangers of fires and explosions, engulfment, toxic or oxygen-deficient atmospheres, hearing loss, struck-by injuries, amputation, electrocution, and hazardous chemicals. The fact that a catastrophic incident has not occurred does not absolve this employer of its responsibility to reduce and prevent risk and eliminate hazards that could injure or kill its workers.”

The inspection revealed hazardous accumulations of explosive, combustible wood dust on structural supports, pipes, fixtures, ductwork, equipment and floors. The wood shavings were as deep as one foot in some areas and created a fall and slipping hazard.

The U.S Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited both Emcor Group Inc. (Emcor Government Services) and EEC Inc. for serious safety violations. These violations occurred during an inspection at a building in Washington, D.C. after three workers were hospitalized with serious burns from a flash fire that occurred inside ductwork.Emcor Government Services was cited for six serious violations, including: failing to control flammable vapors, failing to address hazards associated with working in confined spaced, failing to identify precautions during hot work operations, failing to ensure safe performance of welding operations in a flammable atmosphere, and failing to ensure the use of approved electrical equipment in a flammable atmosphere. These citations carry a total fine of $35,000.

EEC, Inc. has been cited with sixteen serious violations with a total fine of $25,200. Some of EEC, Inc.’s serious violations include failing to: properly use a ladder and store highly flammable material, control flammable vapors, identify precautions during hot work operations, perform a hazard assessment to determine correct personal protective equipment, recognize hazards associated with working in confined spaces, ensure workplace safety during welding operations in a flammable atmosphere, and provide hazardous communication training and ensure the use of approved electrical equipment in a flammable atmosphere.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited A & B Foundry & Machining LLC with 33 health and safety violations at the Franklin, Ohio site. These 33 violations carried a proposed fine of $170,107.The area director stated, “A & B Foundry & Machining has a responsibility to train and protect workers from known industry hazards, such as exposure to noise, respiratory and machine guarding. Programmed inspections help OSHA achieve its goal of reducing worker injuries and illnesses by directing enforcement resources to industries where the highest rates of injuries and illness have occurred.”

Four of the violations were repeat violations, which exists 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 four repeat violations here include: failing to provide fire extinguisher, noise and chemical hazards training; perform medical evaluations of workers required to use respirators and to fit-test respirators.