Abstract: At 4:00 p.m. on June 1,1994, Employee #1, a truck driver for CNC Transportation, was attempting to unload hot asphalt from his tank trailer. Employee #1 was at a customer's oil terminal. The asphalt is transported at temperatures between 350 and 400 degrees Fahrenheit. During unloading, asphalt leaves the tank trailer by means of a header on the bottom of the tank. The header has an internal valve which is opened from the top of the tank, an external valve at the bottom with a rising stem, and a quick-release cap. Employee #1 was wearing a short sleeve work shirt, slip-on plastic long sleeves, rubber gloves, sun glasses; pants, socks, and work boots. Employee #1 had previously removed his jacket because the day was warm. He had not worn a hard hat and face shield because, in certain work positions, they kept falling off his head. After he had completed his previous delivery, he had not closed the bottom external valve. When he arrived at this site, he opened the internal valve to let the heat get to the external valve. Employee #1 knew this practice makes it easier to open the external valve. However, Employee #1 did not realize the external valve was already open. Employee #1 then removed the quick release cap over the trailer tank's outlet header. Hot asphalt sprayed from the outlet burning and scalding the employee. The employee was hospitalized. Employee #1 initially moved away from the area, but then went back to close the external valve.