UNITED STATES
DEPARTMENT OF LABOR

On December 20, 2002, two employees returned to the site to identify the bad areas inside the digester with some type of marking. The workers entered the digester and lowered themselves to the platform. The employees then lowered the platform as low as it could go, approximately 29 feet to the cone area. The workers were wearing their safety harnesses and lanyards attached to the lifeline. After marking the cone area, they returned to the platform and did not reinstall the outer section of the platform. The workers continued inspecting the walls, moving the platform up every 4 ft. until reaching the dome area approximately 37 ft. high. A coworker said he was working on the wall with his back turned to Employee #1 when he heard a noise and turned around, Employee #1 was gone. The coworker looked down to the bottom of the digester and saw Employee #2 laying across a section of the grading. The employee was attached to or tangled with another line or cable at the platform level. The emergency response team arrived, removed Employee #1 from the digester, and transported the employee to the local hospital, where he later died.