Accident Report Detail
Accident Summary Nr: 170087589 - Three employees overexposed to nitrogen dioxide
Inspection Nr | Date Opened | SIC | NAICS | Establishment Name |
---|---|---|---|---|
116310905 | 04/11/1995 | 3674 | 0 | Teccor Electronics, Inc. |
Abstract: Employees #1 and #2 were working in a cleanroom at a semiconductor manufacturer. A concentrated mixture of nitric, hydrofluoric, and acetic acids was being used to etch on silicon wafers in an enclosed, ventilated machine. The acid was also being recirculated by a pump outside the machine. The faulty pump was leaking into a containment box, which eventually overflowed onto a floor littered with waste silicon wafers. It has not been determined how much acid overflowed. The acid mixture reacted with the waste wafer chips, creating a yellowish brown cloud of nitrogen dioxide. The employees summoned their supervisors, who brought them back to the room for about five minutes to determine the cloud's origin. No one was wearing any respiratory protection. Employee #3 entered from a door directly in front of the cloud. She gasped immediately and began choking. Employees #1, #2, and #3 were taken to the hospital and treated overnight for inhalation of corrosive gas. They continue to have respiratory difficulties.
Employee # | Inspection Nr | Age | Sex | Degree of Injury | Nature of Injury | Occupation |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 116310905 | Hospitalized injury | Poisoning(Systemic) | Electrical and electronic technicians | ||
2 | 116310905 | Hospitalized injury | Poisoning(Systemic) | Electrical and electronic technicians | ||
3 | 116310905 | Hospitalized injury | Poisoning(Systemic) | Electrical and electronic technicians |