August 7, 2018
U.S. Department of Labor and Alabama Auto Dealership Settle
Safety Citations and Penalties Following Fatal Fire
JASPER, AL – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Carl Cannon Inc., an automobile dealership, have reached a settlement agreement to resolve citations and penalties issued after five employees were injured, three fatally, in a fire at the company’s Jasper, Alabama, facility. The company will pay $114,074 in penalties.
OSHA’s investigation determined that the fire occurred as employees used a flammable brake wash to scrub the service pit floor. OSHA cited the company for failing to implement all elements of a chemical hazard communication program, improperly storing flammable liquids, and allowing the use of unapproved electrical receptacles and equipment in a hazardous area. As part of the settlement, which became final on Aug. 1, 2018, the company agreed to correct the hazards, provide the required abatement documentation, and comply with safety and health standards.
“This settlement serves as a commitment by the employer to abate identified workplace hazards, and ensure continuous compliance with OSHA safety standards to prevent a tragedy such as this from recurring,” said OSHA Birmingham Area Office Director Ramona Morris.
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 help 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 https://www.osha.gov.
=============================
Auto dealership deaths lead to safety citations Reprints
Gloria Gonzalez 12/12/2017 9:26:00 AM
U.S. federal safety regulators have cited and proposed $152,099 in penalties against an Alabama automobile dealership after three employees died and two were injured in a fire.
The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration initiated an investigation into Jasper, Alabama-based Carl Cannon Inc. in response to a flash fire and determined that the employees were using a flammable brake wash to scrub the service pit floor when the fire occurred, the agency said Monday in a statement. Three employees were fatally injured, a fourth was critically burned, and a fifth employee was treated for smoke inhalation and released.
OSHA issued Carl Cannon one willful and two serious safety citations for failing to implement all elements of a chemical hazard communication program, improperly storing flammable liquids and allowing unapproved electrical receptacles and equipment to be used in a hazardous area, according to the statement.
“Failure to effectively implement a hazard communication program has tragically resulted in the loss of lives and serious injuries,” OSHA Area Director Ramona Morris in Birmingham, Alabama, said in the statement. “Employers must ensure employees are trained and aware of the hazards associated with handling flammable chemicals.”
A company spokesperson could not be immediately reached for comment.
===========================
A fire at a Chevrolet dealership in Jasper, Ala., left one employee dead, three critically injured and one with minor wounds.
The men were working in the service department of the dealership when a flash fire broke out Monday around 5:30 p.m, burning the victims.
The fire took the life of Jake Jennings, team leader of the Express Lube department at Carl Cannon Chevrolet-Cadillac-Buick-GMC, according to officials from the Alabama State Fire Marshal’s office. A local newspaper reported Jennings was 39.
"Jake was an amazing employee," the dealership wrote on its Facebook page Wednesday afternoon. "A big jolly guy whose sense of humor was only matched by his work ethic."
The city's mayor David O'Mary said workers were using flammable solvent to clean in an oil change area when"something ignited," The Daily Mountain Eagle reported. "Those vapors created a fire bomb in that pit," O'Mary added.
The Jasper fire department did not respond to calls for comment.
"Our team on the ground had been in contact with the dealership," Chevrolet said in an e-mailed statement. "There is a lot we don't know about this terrible accident. Our hearts go out to all of the families involved."
Alabama State Fire Marshal Scott Pilgreen told The Daily Mountain Eagle: "We're not at a point right now where we're going to say anything in regard to what we think may have led to what happened. We're going to let the investigative process run its course."
Carl Cannon Chevrolet could not be reached for comment, but wrote in a Facebook post that investigations are ongoing and the cause of the fire has not been determined yet, adding "we all want nothing more than to understand what happened and why."