THREE CARS, TANKER TRUCK CRASH IN FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA. FUEL LEAKED FROM THE TRUCK, NO INJURIES REPORTED.

 

THREE CARS, TANKER TRUCK CRASH IN FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA.  FUEL LEAKED FROM THE TRUCK, NO INJURIES REPORTED.

January 28, 2015

FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA:

 

Three cars and a tanker truck crashed Wednesday in Fort Lauderdale, leaving one car mangled and the truck leaking fluid.

The crash happened around 11:15 a.m. at State Road 84 and U.S. 1. The cause of the crash is under investigation but it appears the truck might have rear-ended one of the cars, said Fort Lauderdale Fire Rescue Deputy Fire Chief Timothy Heiser.

A hazardous materials team responded following initial reports of fuel leaking from the truck, which was filled with gasoline, Heiser said. The leak, which was coming from the front of the truck, turned out to be transmission and radiator fluids.

One car had heavy damage, particularly to the rear, while the other two cars had minor to moderate damage, Heiser said.

"Amazingly, there were no injuries and no one was transported from the scene," he said.

TRACTOR TRAILER POSSIBLE CAUSE OF 3-ALARM FIRE AT MEADOWS ASSOCIATES IN HOLYOKE, MASSACHUSETTS

 

TRACTOR TRAILER POSSIBLE CAUSE OF 3-ALARM FIRE AT MEADOWS ASSOCIATES IN HOLYOKE, MASSACHUSETTS

Sunday, February 1, 2015

HOLYOKE, MASSACHUSETTS — 

A tractor trailer in a garage at Meadow Associates caused a large fire at the factory at 114 North Bridge St. Sunday morning, officials said.

Holyoke Fire Capt. Anthony Cerruti said the fire started around 10:30 a.m. and was called in by a passerby who saw smoke coming from the roof of the building.

"When crews arrived they saw a lot of smoke coming from the windows near the roof of the building," he said.

The fire is believed to have started in one of the garages housing a tractor trailer on the property. Cerruti said there was no one in the building at the time of the fire and he cannot yet estimate the damage.

The building will remain closed until the city's building inspector can assess the damage.

"There was a lot of smoke which caused damage to offices and computers, there is smoke damage everywhere and there was structural damage as well," Cerruti said.

The cause of the fire is undetermined at this time. Fire crews from Chicopee, West Springfield and South Hadley assisted Holyoke firefighters.

Indianhead Biomass Services explosion severely injures 2 workers. 2nd explosion in 4 months results in more OSHA citations

Indianhead Biomass Services explosion severely injures 2 workers.
2^nd explosion in 4 months results in more OSHA citations

Jan. 28, 2015

ST. AUGUSTINE, Fla – A second explosion in four months at the Indianhead Biomass Services plant in St. Augustine has left two laborers severely burned. An inspection by the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that two men in their 50s attempted to shut down a sawdust dryer to unclog an outlet vent. This created an explosive environment when smoldering embers ignited the sawdust inside the dryer. Employed at the plant for a year, the men usually did concrete work, but were recently assigned to operate the wood pellet mill dryer. Indianhead Biomass Services is a solid waste disposal facility and processing plant.

Indianhead Biomass Services plant in St. Augustine, Florida, where two explosions occurred in March and July 2014, injuring four workers.

OSHA issued eight safety citations to the employer following the second explosion on July 29, 2014. Proposed penalties total $91,000. The first explosion in March 2014 permanently disabled one worker and another suffered a leg injury while making modifications to a wood gas heat exchanger. As a result of its inspection after the first explosion, OSHA issued the company two willful and seven serious violations in August 2014
"At the time of this investigation, the employer had another open OSHA inspection from a previous industrial explosion that left two other employees injured. The employer was aware of the requirements for a proper system design and for protecting workers from amputations, but neglected to enact necessary safety measures," said Brian Sturtecky, OSHA's area director in Jacksonville. "The result was a workplace that endangered all the employees and caused another tragic incident."
OSHA issued the employer a willful citation for failure to design and implement fire and explosion protective measures for the wood pellet processing system. A willful violation is one committed with intentional, knowing or voluntary disregard for the law's requirement, or with plain indifference to worker safety and health.
Indianhead received five serious citations for not developing or implementing a hazard communication plan; failing to ensure that each worker used a lock to protect against machine startup when performing maintenance activities; not providing training to workers on how to remove stored power from equipment and perform services and maintenance safely; and failing to evaluate the workspace to determine if the work area required confined space permits. Other violations included not verifying that a hazard assessment had been performed and not having a respiratory protection program
A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.
OSHA inspected Indianhead twice since March 2014 and issued citations for amputation hazards, unsafe crane operation and violations associated with compressed gas.
The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to comply, request a conference with OSHA's area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics preliminary data from the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries, fatal work injuries in Florida accounted for 234 of the 4,405 fatal work* injuries reported nationally in 2013. Additional details are available at http://www.bls.gov.
To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint or report workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's Jacksonville Area Office at 904-232-2895.
Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA's role is to ensure these conditions for America's working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.

Plastics manufacturer exposed workers to amputation hazards OSHA cites Plastic Molding Technology Inc. in El Paso, Texas, for 11 safety violations; fines total $47,700

Plastics manufacturer exposed workers to amputation hazards
OSHA cites Plastic Molding Technology Inc. in El Paso, Texas, for 11 safety violations; fines total $47,700

Jan. 28, 2015

Employer name: Plastic Molding Technology Inc.
Site: El Paso, Texas

Date initiated: The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration initiated the November 2014 inspection under the National Emphasis Program on Amputations. The NEP is designed to identify and reduce workplace hazards that cause or are likely to cause amputations.

Investigation findings: OSHA's El Paso Area Office cited the employer for failure to: develop procedures for properly isolating the equipment energy source to prevent the equipment from moving while workers performed maintenance; perform required periodic inspections of its lockout/tagout program, which protects workers from machine hazards during maintenance and servicing; replace damaged or missing safety guards on a plastic injection molding machine and other equipment that could cause burns or electrical shock to workers. Additionally, electrical equipment was not properly installed or maintained and a conveyor was not effectively grounded to prevent workers from being electrocuted. A serious violation occurs when there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.

Proposed Penalties: $47,700

Information: To ask questions, obtain compliance assistance, file a complaint or report workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's El Paso office at 915-534-6251.

Van with a bucket hits a low clearance bridge and flips over, catching fire

Van with a bucket hits a low clearance bridge and flips over, catching fire

February 2, 2015

A van mounted aerial lift flipped onto its side after hitting a bridge yesterday in Bradford, Yorkshire, UK.

We have very little information on what happened, apart from the fact that as the van mount tried to pass under the bridge it struck it and flipped over. The bridge carries a railway line, so Network rail shut rail traffic down for an hour and a half while it checked the structural integrity of the bridge. No one was injured in the incident.

The van caught the bridge as it passed under

CATASTROPHIC 3-ALARM FIRE RIPS THROUGH 1920’S CHURCH IN RIVERSIDE; NO INJURIES REPORTED, BUT DAMAGE EXCEEDS 2,500,000.

 

CATASTROPHIC 3-ALARM FIRE RIPS THROUGH 1920’S CHURCH IN RIVERSIDE; NO INJURIES REPORTED, BUT DAMAGE EXCEEDS 2,500,000.

Sunday, February 1, 2015

RIVERSIDE, CALIFORNIA:

No one was inside a church in Riverside early Sunday morning when a catastrophic fire broke out, officials said.

Thirty-eight firefighters responded about 1:08  a.m. to the Living World Christian Center, located in the 4200 block of 11th Street, where heavy smoke and flames were emitting from the roof of the the single-story building, according to a news release from the Riverside Fire Department.

After about 18 minutes of battling the three-alarm blaze, firefighters inside the historical structure reported a running fire in the attic and the possibility of structural collapse, the release said.

Shortly after the interior crew was withdrawn from the church, the roof collapsed, officials said. Two ladder trucks were then used to attack the flames from above.

The fire was extinguished within two hours. No injuries were reported.

Arson investigators from the Fire Department and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives were called to the scene and were working to determine the cause of the incident, fire Chief Michael Moore said.

The damage to the 1920s-era building was estimated at $2,500,000.

3 DEAD AFTER CAR CRASH ONTO TREES, EMBANKMENT, AND FINALLY FIRE ON HWY 101 IN SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA

 

3 DEAD AFTER CAR CRASH ONTO TREES, EMBANKMENT, AND FINALLY FIRE ON HWY 101 IN SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA

Sunday, February 01, 2015

SAN JOSE, CALIFORNIA--

Three people were killed in a car fire on U.S. Highway 101 in San Jose after their vehicle went off the roadway and crashed into two trees early Sunday morning, according to the California Highway Patrol.

Officers responded to a report of car fire on southbound U.S. Highway 101 just north of Interstate Highway 680 shortly before 2 a.m., CHP Officer Ron Simmons said.

Arriving officers found a red four-door 2005 Infiniti sedan fully engulfed in flames, CHP officials said.

San Jose firefighters were on the scene before CHP officers, extinguished the blaze and found three people inside had died, CHP Officer Ross Lee said.

The Santa Clara County medical examiner's office was called to the scene.

Based on a preliminary investigation, it appears the vehicle was traveling south on Highway 101 where it left the roadway, Lee said.

The left front of the car struck a tree, traveled south, struck another tree and rotated clockwise, CHP officials said.

The sedan then went into an embankment near Highway 101 at the split to Interstate Highway 280 and Interstate Highway 680 and caught on fire, Lee said.

Investigators have not determined if alcohol was a factor in the crash, CHP officials said.

A 34-year-old man and 31-year-old woman, both of San Jose, were inside the car, according to the CHP.

Another man was also inside the car but CHP officials did not have information on his age or city of residence.

The names of the decedents have not been released until they have been positively identified and their next of kin has been notified, CHP officials said.

Anyone who witnessed the crash is asked to call CHP Officer Miguel Camarena at (408) 467-5400.