Abstract: On March 14, 2002, Employee #1 was part of a five-man crew which was painting stripes on a street. The stripes were being painted with a thermoplastic traffic marking material that had to be heated between 400 and 450 degrees F. This material was initially granular, but the heating process made it liquid or molten. They were using a truck that was specifically designed to spray paint the stripes. The truck was a 1994 Volvo Truck Viking Longliner Thermoplastic Applicator. All the equipment that was needed to paint the stripes was built onto the truck; such as the heating kettles, spraying mechanism, etc. There were no written procedures on how to properly use or maintain this equipment or about the process itself. When Employee #1 opened the thermoplastic material valve of the rear kettle, the hot molten thermoplastic material spewed from the space between the lip of the rear kettle and its lid. Normally, the lid of the kettle is closed and sealed with a locking mechanism, but residue of the thermoplastic material had been allowed to collect in this area, preventing the lid from being fully sealed and secured. When the molten material spewed from the kettle, it struck and burned Employee #1 on his head, face, ear, neck and hands. He died later as a result of his injuries.