World of Safety
OSHA Releases Interactive Online Cadmium Exposure Tool
The US Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has released an online interactive tool to help protect workers who are exposed to cadmium.
Cadmium is a soft, silver-white metal used in many industries such as metal machining, plastics, ceramics, painting and welding operations. Workers may also be exposed to cadmium from the smelting and refining of metals or from air in industrial plants that manufacture batteries or coatings.
The Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry estimates that about 300,000 workers across the US face exposure to cadmium each year. Short-term exposure to cadmium can cause weakness, fever, headache, chills, sweating and muscular pain.
Chronic cadmium poisoning can cause kidney damage, lung cancer and prostate cancer and cadmium is also believed to be linked to pulmonary emphysema and bone diseases such as osteoporosis.
OSHA’s Cadmium Biological Monitoring Advisor analyzes biological monitoring results provided by the user. These data, along with a series of answers to questions generated by the cadmium advisor, are used to determine the biological monitoring and medical surveillance requirements that must be met under the general industry cadmium standard.
These requirements include the frequency of additional monitoring and other mandatory components of the employer’s medical surveillance program.
The advisor is primarily intended for use by experienced medical professionals who assess workers’ cadmium exposure, although it may also be useful as an educational tool for workers and members of the public by providing information on what constitutes overexposure to cadmium and what to do to prevent exposure on the job.
There is a separate cadmium standard (29 CFR 1926.1127) that protects workers in the construction industry. While the new cadmium advisor may be useful in assisting medical analysis of biological monitoring for construction workers, it does not refer to the applicable provisions of this standard and should therefore be used primarily in a general industry setting.
Safety Engineers Urge Supply Chain Safety Improvements
The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) and the Center for Safety and Health Sustainability are urging corporations to improve supply chain safety management and protect vulnerable workers in developing nations.
Their joint
plea comes in response to horrendous workplace fires that recently killed more than 300 workers in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
“Any organization wishing to proclaim itself as sustainable must have a safety management system in place to protect its workers and in a similar manner, any sustainable organization using suppliers from underdeveloped and developing nations must also require those suppliers to protect the safety and health of their employees,” says Thomas Cecich, ASSE vice-president for professional affairs and chair of the Center for Safety and Health Sustainability.
The Center, representing more than 100,000 international occupational safety, health and environmental professionals, notes that many people around the world continue to work in unacceptably unsafe conditions. Supply chain workers in developing nations tend to be particularly vulnerable because they face a number of workplace challenges that aren’t commonly seen in the developed world.
“Management systems for safety may be weak or nonexistent and workers tend to lack training and supervision. They often lack basic knowledge and tools required to be proactive about their own safety,” says Cecich. “Even the most basic safety and health measures and investments are frequently bypassed. Published reports of the recent tragic fires in Pakistan and Bangladesh say fundamental fire safety precautions, such as accessible exits, were lacking.”
Cecich says one of the Center’s goals is to influence organizations to adopt best practices with regard to safety and health sustainability—defined as “an organization’s responsibility to ensure the protection of human life and the safety, health and well-being of workers, customers and neighboring communities.”
The Center will soon release a report entitled “Current Practices in Occupational Health and Safety Sustainability Reporting” to address shortcomings in occupational safety and health-related reporting among 100 global corporations otherwise deemed the most sustainable in the world. Among the many findings of the report is underreporting of metrics related to worker safety in the supply chain.
“It’s not enough to condemn local factory owners for these conditions and to expect long- term change,” says Cecich. “The corporations that source supply chain products,
as well as their stakeholders, have tremendous power to influence the conditions in which supply chain workers operate.”Rich Text AreaToolbarBold (Ctrl / Alt + Shift + B)Italic (Ctrl / Alt + Shift + I)Strikethrough (Alt + Shift + D)Unordered list (Alt + Shift + U)Ordered list (Alt + Shift + O)Blockquote (Alt + Shift + Q)Align Left (Alt + Shift + L)Align Center (Alt + Shift + C)Align Right (Alt + Shift + R)Insert/edit link (Alt + Shift + A)Unlink (Alt + Shift + S)Insert More Tag (Alt + Shift + T)Toggle spellchecker (Alt + Shift + N)▼
Toggle fullscreen mode (Alt + Shift + G)Show/Hide Kitchen Sink (Alt + Shift + Z)Add ET Learn more blockAdd ET BoxAdd ET ButtonAdd ET TabsAdd Author Bio
FormatFormat▼
UnderlineAlign Full (Alt + Shift + J)Select text color▼
Paste as Plain TextPaste from WordRemove formattingInsert custom characterOutdentIndentUndo (Ctrl + Z)Redo (Ctrl + Y)Help (Alt + Shift + H)
The American Society of Safety Engineers (ASSE) and the Center for Safety and Health Sustainability are urging corporations to improve supply chain safety management and protect vulnerable workers in developing nations.
Their joint plea comes in response to horrendous workplace fires that recently killed more than 300 workers in Pakistan and Bangladesh.
“Any organization wishing to proclaim itself as sustainable must have a safety management system in place to protect its workers and in a similar manner, any sustainable organization using suppliers from underdeveloped and developing nations must also require those suppliers to protect the safety and health of their employees,” says Thomas Cecich, ASSE vice-president for professional affairs and chair of the Center for Safety and Health Sustainability.
The Center, representing more than 100,000 international occupational safety, health and environmental professionals, notes that many people around the world continue to work in unacceptably unsafe conditions. Supply chain workers in developing nations tend to be particularly vulnerable because they face a number of workplace challenges that aren’t commonly seen in the developed world.
“Management systems for safety may be weak or nonexistent and workers tend to lack training and supervision. They often lack basic knowledge and tools required to be proactive about their own safety,” says Cecich. “Even the most basic safety and health measures and investments are frequently bypassed. Published reports of the recent tragic fires in Pakistan and Bangladesh say fundamental fire safety precautions, such as accessible exits, were lacking.”
Cecich says one of the Center’s goals is to influence organizations to adopt best practices with regard to safety and health sustainability—defined as “an organization’s responsibility to ensure the protection of human life and the safety, health and well-being of workers, customers and neighboring communities.”
The Center will soon release a report entitled “Current Practices in Occupational Health and Safety Sustainability Reporting” to address shortcomings in occupational safety and health-related reporting among 100 global corporations otherwise deemed the most sustainable in the world. Among the many findings of the report is underreporting of metrics related to worker safety in the supply chain.
“It’s not enough to condemn local factory owners for these conditions and to expect long- term change,” says Cecich. “The corporations that source supply chain products, as well as their stakeholders, have tremendous power to influence the conditions in which supply chain workers operate.”
Path:
Ventilation Systems Might Not Remove CO Build-up
The November 2012 issue of Safe Supervisor contained a focus on carbon monoxide (CO) hazards in buildings and mentioned the importance of ensuring adequate ventilation in areas where equipment such as forklifts might generate the potentially deadly gas.
Now the Washington State Department of Labor and Industries’ Division of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH), is warning that workplace ventilation systems may not be capable of removing a buildup of CO gas.
DOSH says it investigated three incidents of workplace carbon monoxide poisoning that sickened 11 employees and found that equipment operated in large spaces for less than two hours generated dangerously high levels of CO.
“Industrial fans and negative pressure air machines are often not enough to stop a serious CO buildup, even in large spaces. Testing the air for CO during work activities will tell you if your ventilation setup is keeping CO below regulatory limits,” says DOSH. “If high CO levels persist, you may need to add a portable ventilation system that can ensure enough contaminated air is effectively vented to the outside and replaced by fresh air.”
World of Safety: Massachusetts Blast Blamed on Human Error
According to Massachusetts Fire Marshal Stephen Coan, a human error triggered the recent explosion in Springfield, MA. The huge explosion resulted in 21 injuries and damage to more than 40 buildings.
Officials said it’s a m
iracle that no one was killed in the blast in the city of about 150,000 residents.
A utility worker who was investigating a strong natural gas smell in Springfield’s entertainment district inadvertently punctured a high-pressure gas line with a metal probing tool being used to determine whether pockets of natural gas were leaking into the ground.
Markings indicating where the gas line was located were not accurate, according to Coan.
Gas escaped into Scores Gentlemen’s Club and ignited, leveling the building and damaging many others. Fortunately, the club had been evacuated because of the gas smell
The injured include 12 Springfield firefighters, who suffered burns, knee injuries, bruising or concussions from the blast’s impact.
OSHA Launches Page Highlighting Winter Hazards
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has created a web page to help protect workers from hazards they may face during winter storm response and recovery operations.
The web page provides guidance on how employers and workers involved in cleanup and recovery operations can recognize snowstorm related hazards and the necessary steps that employers must take to keep workers safe while working in such conditions.
It includes guidance for workers clearing heavy snow in front of workplaces and from rooftops, workers encountering downed power lines or traveling on icy roads, and utility workers restoring power after winter storms.
Hazards associated with winter storms include being struck by falling objects such as icicles, tree limbs and utility poles; driving accidents on slippery roadways and carbon monoxide poisoning. Other hazards include:
- Dehydration, hypothermia and frostbite,
- Exhaustion from strenuous activity,
- Back injuries or heart attack while removing snow,
- Slips, trips and falls due to slippery walkways,
- Electrocution from downed power lines and downed objects in contact with power lines,
- Burns from fires caused by energized line contact or equipment failure,
- Falls during snow removal on roofs or while working in aerial lifts or on ladders,
- Roof collapse under weight of snow (or melting snow if drains are clogged) and,
- Lacerations or amputations from unguarded or improperly operated chainsaws and power tools, and improperly attempting to clear jams in snow blowers.
Effective means of addressing winter storm hazards are as follows:
- Assume all power lines are energized and stay well clear of any downed or damaged power lines,
- Make certain all powered equipment is properly guarded and disconnected from power sources before cleaning or performing maintenance,
- Use caution around surfaces weighed down by large amounts of snow or ice,
- Scoop small amounts of snow and use proper lifting form to avoid overexertion or injuries,
- Clear walking surfaces of snow and ice and use salt or its equivalent where appropriate,
- Employers should provide and ensure the use of fall protection and provide and maintain ladders,
- If your vehicle becomes stuck or develops mechanical problems and you must stop, stay in it and wait for help unless help is visible within 100 yards,
- Wear reflective clothing and eye, face and body protection,
- Establish and clearly mark work zones and,
- Use engineering controls, PPE and safe work practices to reduce the length and severity of exposure to the cold.
Visit the web page by clicking here.
Judge Orders $17.8 Million Crash Payout
A federal judge has ordered the US government to pay nearly $18 million to a family who lost two children, a mother and grandmother when a military jet plunged into their San Diego home in 2008.
Don Yoon lost his wife, Youngmi Lee Yoon, 36, his 15-month-old daughter, Grace and two-month-old daughter, Rachel, and his mother-in-law, 59, who was visiting from Korea.
Yoon told the US District Judge Jeffrey Miller he longs for the day when he can join his family.
The crash of an F-18 Hornet jet into two homes, one of them occupied at the time, was blamed on mechanical failure linked to poor maintenance and human error. The human error element largely surrounds an order by the pilot’s superior officers to not land the crippled fighter jet at a closer airport; but instead try to make it back to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
The F-18 went down in a residential area about two miles short of a runway. The student pilot who ejected the aircraft moments before the crash described screaming in horror upon seeing it crash into the homes.
Yoon will receive $10 million, while his father-in-law, Sanghyun Lee, will receive nearly $4 million. The rest will be given to three adult children who lost their 59-year-old mother.
This is believed to be the largest wrongful death verdict in history against the US government.
Ottawa School Board Charged in Student’s Death
Fire officials in Ottawa, ON, have charged that city’s Catholic School Board in relation to the death of an 18-year-old student in May 2011. Eric Leighton was part of a group of students building barbecues in the auto shop of Mother Teresa High School when vapors from an empty oil drum exploded.
The student had reportedly been using a grinding tool to cut open a barrel that once contained peppermint oil.
The Ontario Fire Code charge alleges that the school allowed students to weld or cut a totally enclosed container.
The maximum penalty upon conviction is $100,000. The Ontario Ministry of Labour is also investigating Leighton’s death. It has ordered the school to not engage in any hot work projects involving welding, grinding or drilling.
Sleep disorders affecting police officers’safety
A study led by the Dr. Charles Czeisler of the Division of Sleep Medicine at Harvard Medical School has found that many police officers are suffering from the effects of sleep disorders and are consequently putting public safety and their own safety at risk.
Researchers screened about 5,000 police officers across North America and found that 30 percent had a chronic sleep problem, such as insomnia or sleep apnea, which was usually undiagnosed. People with sleep disorders were more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety and job burnout and alarmingly, 46 percent of the police officers polled admitted to having fallen asleep at the wheel, the study found.
Eighteen percent of the officers who reported having sleep disorders admitted to making serious administrative errors, compared to 13 percent of study participants who do not have sleep disorders.
Twenty-four percent of officers with sleep disorders reported having committed other errors or safety violations as a result of fatigue and 34 percent reported being unable to control their temper when dealing with civilians.
NIOSH Raises Red Flag on Erionite Exposure
The National Institute for Occupation Safety and Health (NIOSH) says erionite, a naturally occurring silicate mineral, could be placing North American workers at risk for serious health problems similar to those caused by asbestos exposure.
Disturbance of erionite can generate airborne fibers whose physical properties are similar to asbestos, putting people at risk for developing malignant mesothelioma—a cancer of the lining of the lung and chest cavity or lining of the abdomen.
“Until recently, erionite was not generally considered to be a potential hazard in North America, in part because relatively little risk for exposure was seen,” according to the NIOSH Science Blog. “However, evidence has slowly accumulated linking exposure to erionite with serious adverse health effects in North America, and suggesting that some workers may have a greater potential for exposure than previously thought.”
A road construction worker in Utah was the first worker diagnosed with erionite-related lung disease in 1981. NIOSH says that since the 1980s, gravel pits have been excavated in areas containing erionite deposits and when the gravel is placed on roads, there is a potential for airborne erionite fiber exposure.
There are no regulatory or consensus standards or occupational exposure limits for airborne erionite fibers, although the National Toxicology Program has designed erionite as a known human carcinogen.
NIOSH says risk-reduction recommendations to limit erionite exposures of workers who engage in activities that disturb erionite-containing gravel or soil include educating them about the potential health hazards and control methods for reducing the potential for exposure—including wet methods to reduce airborne dust generation— and providing workers with appropriate PPE.
Parkinson’s Disease Linked to Industrial Solvent Exposure
An international study suggests that workers who are exposed to trichloroethylene (TCE), an industrial solvent, may have six times the risk of developing Parkinson’s disease as workers who are not exposed to TCE.
Researchers in the US, Canada, Germany and Argentina looked at 99 sets of American twins, in which one twin had developed Parkinson’s disease—a degenerative central nervous system disorder characterized by shaking, rigidity, slowness of movement and difficulty walking— and the other had not.
The twins were interviewed to determine their work histories and calculate their potential exposure to six solvents.
The people who were exposed to TCE, perchloroethylene (PERC) and carbon tetrachloride (CCl4) were found to be at significant risk for developing the disease, while workers exposed to three other solvents—toluene, xylene and n-hexane, were not found to be at statistically increased risk for being diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease.
“Our findings, as well as prior case reports, suggest a time lag of up to 40 years between TCE exposure and onset of Parkinson’s, providing a critical window of opportunity to potentially slow the disease before clinical symptoms appear,” says study co-author Dr. Samuel Goldman of The Parkinson’s Institute in Sunnyvale, CA.
Info to go: Read more about trichloroethylene health hazards by clicking on the Info to Go safety links here.
