OSHA SAYS SAFETY SHORTCUTS CAUSED FATAL 2014 EXPLOSION AT U.S. STEEL IN FAIRFIELD, ALABAMA

MARCH 25, 2015

BIRMINGHAM, ALABAMA (WBRC)

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) said on Wednesday that "safety shortcuts led to the explosion that killed two U.S. Steel workers in 2014.  Unfortunately, this is so true most of the time when accidents occur in the workplace: lack of training, lack of maintenance, inexperienced personnel, and human errors are the leading causes of deaths or injuries.

Edward Lamar Bryant, 53, and Leo Bridges, 61, were killed and a third employee was injured in the September explosion.
OSHA investigators said the explosion was caused by opening and closing a high-pressure valve while a furnace was running. OHSA said management put workers at risk for injury when they ordered workers to operate the valve this way.
"This employer chose productivity over the safety of its workers, and two people died as a result of this decision," said Ramona Morris, OSHA's area director.
OHSA has issued U.S. Steel a willful citation as well as seven serious citations for:
-Not developing and using a procedure to control the hazardous energy to allow workers to operate the valves on the furnace while it is in operation.
-Not developing a procedure to prevent the furnace from releasing hazardous energy while workers performed maintenance.
-Missing exit signs.
-An improperly installed exit gate.
-Not training workers to recognize hazardous conditions with the oxygen system.
U.S. Steel has 15 days to respond to the citations and the penalties total $107,900.
You can read more about the current violations at: https://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/UnitedStatesSteelCorporation_996555_0320_15.pdf 

U.S. Steel released this statement in response to the citations:

"U. S. Steel has received and is reviewing the citations issued by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) following its investigation of the September 21, 2014 incident at our Fairfield Works in Birmingham, Ala., which resulted in the deaths of two of our employees and the injury of another. 

We remain deeply saddened by the loss of our friends and colleagues, and continue to express our sincerest sympathies to their families.

U. S. Steel has a long-standing commitment to the safety and health of the men and women who work for our company. Safety is a primary core value and something we take very seriously. We have worked cooperatively with OSHA and the United Steelworkers throughout the investigation and will continue to work with them going forward."

OSHA has inspected U.S. Steel 14 times since 2009. Citations have been issued for unsafe crane operation, violations associated with flammable liquids, amputation hazards and other issues.

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2ND EMPLOYEE DIES FROM INJURIES IN U.S. STEEL EXPLOSION

SEPTEMBER 23, 2014

FAIRFIELD, ALABAMA (WBRC)

A second employee has died from injuries sustained in an explosion at the U.S. Steel plant in Fairfield.

Three employees were injured in an explosion in the Q-BOP area of the Fairfield Works plant on Sunday night.

Edward Lamar Bryant, a 53-year-old Verbena man, died from his injuries at UAB Hospital a little after 6 p.m. on Sunday.

Leo Bridges succumbed to his injuries at UAB Hospital at 10:40 a.m. Tuesday, September 23.

A third employee, Mac Bedwell, is being treated at UAB's Trauma and Burn Intensive Care Unit. There is no update on his condition. 

U.S. Steel issued this statement on Tuesday afternoon: 

"In the evening of Sunday, Sept. 21, there was an incident at U. S. Steel's Fairfield Works' Q-BOP in Birmingham which resulted in the injury of three employees. Following the incident the employees were transported to an area hospital where two employees have unfortunately died as the result of their injuries. An investigation into the incident is underway. Fairfield Works is operational. No further details are available at this time."

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1 KILLED, 2 INJURED IN U.S. STEEL EXPLOSION IN FAIRFIELD, ALABAMA

SEPTEMBER 23, 2014

FAIRFIELD, AL (WBRC)

One person was killed and two others injured in an explosion at U.S. Steel in Fairfield on Sunday night.

The Jefferson County coroner identified the victim as 53-year-old Edward Lamar Bryant from Verbena. He died at UAB Hospital at 6:08 p.m. on Sunday.

The two other injured employees are still being treated at UAB Hospital. They have been identified as Leo Bridges and Mac Bedwell. They're being treated at UAB's Trauma and Burn Intensive Care Unit.

Their conditions are unknown at this time, but there are several unconfirmed reports that they have severe burns on their bodies.

U.S. Steel confirmed the accident in a statement released on Monday afternoon:

"In the evening of Sunday, Sept. 21, there was an incident at U. S. Steel's Fairfield Works' Q-BOP in Birmingham which resulted in the injury of three employees.  Following the incident the employees were transported to an area hospital where one employee has unfortunately died as the result of his injuries. An investigation into the incident is underway.  Blast furnace operations continue.  No further details are available at this time."

U.S. Steel released the following statement around 8:30 p.m. on Sunday:

"Late today there was an incident at U. S. Steel's Fairfield Works in Birmingham which resulted in the injury of three employees. Following the incident the employees were transported to an area hospital. An investigation into the incident is underway. No additional details regarding the employees or the status of operations are available at this time."

Fairfield police and firefighters didn't respond to the explosion because U.S. Steel has its own emergency response unit.

U.S. Steel is headquartered in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.