Accident Report Detail

Accident Summary Nr: 200051738 - Employee caught by arc blast when cable became grounded

Accident Summary Nr: 200051738 -- Report ID: 0728900 -- Event Date: 09/26/2002
Inspection Nr	Date Opened	SIC	NAICS	Establishment Name
303733653	09/27/2002	1794	0	Omaha Boring Inc.

Abstract: On September 26, 2002, Employee #1 was working with a VAC unit when, for an unknown reason, a nearby underground electrical line became grounded. The subsequent arc blast caught Employee #1 and threw him backwards. He was stunned but the arc blast didn't directly contact him and he suffered no serious injuries. He was transported to a local hospital, where he was treated and released. Subsequent investigation revealed that Employee #1 was using a Ring0Matic VAC machine to clean the dirt away from a buried power cable. It was manufactured in 2000 and was purchased as previously owned with 258 hours of use. His company had been hired to replace power lines in a substation complex due to the facility being modernized. The VAC unit was being used to accomplish the cleaning in locations known to hold underground utility cables. It uses water at 3,000 psi to break the dirt free and create a slurry which is then vacuumed by the unit. The system is contained on a trailer and contains its own water supply and catch tank. Personnel from the local power company, the owners of the cable, believe that there may have been a defect in the insulation of the cable. This allowed the water from the VAC unit to enter the power cable and create a grounded path, leading to the arc blast.

Keywords: LEAK, ELECTRIC ARC, PROTECTIVE GROUNDING, ELECTRIC CABLE, CLEANING, CAUGHT BY, CONSTRUCTION, UNDRGRD POWER LINE

Accident Details
End Use		Project Type		Project Cost	Stories	Non-building Height	Fatality
Powerplant		Alteration or rehabilitation		$50,000 to $250,000

Employee Details
Employee #	Inspection Nr	Age	Sex	Degree of Injury	Nature of Injury	Occupation	Construction
1	303733653			Non Hospitalized injury	Other	Occupation not reported	Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Excavation Fatality Cause: Electric shock, other and unknown cause

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