Accident Report Detail

Accident Summary Nr: 102329653 - Employee suffered fatal injuries while disassembling pipe

Accident Summary Nr: 102329653 -- Report ID: 0420600 -- Event Date: 07/08/2001
Inspection Nr	Date Opened	SIC	NAICS	Establishment Name
304706724	07/16/2001	1711	0	Precision Mechanical, Inc.

Abstract: On July 8, 2001, Employee #1, a pipefitter, was disassembling a section of non-flanged 6-in.-diameter light-weight piping. The piping was under the pressure of nitrogen gas served to provide a positive pressure purge on an adjacent recently chemically-cleaned section of permanent piping. The section of pipe being disassembled had not been isolated from the source of the nitrogen gas. No lockout-tagout system was in place to assure that gas was not diverted into the loop being disassembled. Additionally, the unrestrained section of light-weight pipe was adjoined to a twisted section of flexible hose which likely placed mechanical pressure on the pipe. The pipe blew up in the pipefitter's face when he removed a bolt from the clamp holding a coupling device in place. He suffered fatal injuries.

Keywords: EQUIPMENT FAILURE, NITROGEN, PIPE, FACE, PRESSURE RELEASE

Accident Details
End Use		Project Type		Project Cost	Stories	Non-building Height	Fatality
Other building		New project or new addition		$20,000,000 and over	1	2500	X

Employee Details
Employee #	Inspection Nr	Age	Sex	Degree of Injury	Nature of Injury	Occupation	Construction
1	304706724			Fatality	Fracture	Occupation not reported	Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Other Activities-Installing Ornamental And Archite Fatality Cause: Struck by falling object/projectile

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