Accident Report Detail
Accident Summary Nr: 201925278 - Three Employees Are Exposed to Phosgene During Leak
Inspection Nr | Date Opened | SIC | NAICS | Establishment Name |
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312924434 | 09/14/2010 | 1799 | 238990 | Infinity Construction Services Lp |
Abstract: At 2:30 p.m. on September 13, 2010, Employee #1, Employee #2, and Employee #3 were tasked with the dismantling of a scaffold level within a containment dome (identified as PMDI A-3600) located at the Dow Chemical Company. During their dismantling work, at approximately 80 feet above the ground, alarms specific to phosgene gas, were triggered. The Dow Chemical Company process within this Dome was the manufacturing and use of phosgene to facilitate the production of PMDI (an isocyanate). The leak occurred when an employee of another contractor, working below the three scaffolding employees, removed a "slip blind" between a valve and a downstream section of pipe. The valve and subsequent piping were used to transport liquid phosgene. After the bolts connecting the valve and line were broken, the valve continued to leak phosgene, triggering the alarms. The phosgene dosimeter badges worn by Employee #1, Employee #2, and Employee #3, provided by Dow Chemical, turned a color indicating exposure to between 50 to 100 ppm of phosgene. Dow Chemical transported these employees to the hospital where they stayed for at least eighteen hours for treatment.
End Use | Project Type | Project Cost | Stories | Non-building Height | Fatality | ||
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Manufacturing plant | Alteration or rehabilitation | $250,000 to $500,000 | 4 | 150 |
Employee # | Inspection Nr | Age | Sex | Degree of Injury | Nature of Injury | Occupation | Construction |
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1 | 312924434 | Hospitalized injury | Other | Construction trades, n.e.c. | Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Temporary work (buildings, facilities) Fatality Cause: Other |
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2 | 312924434 | Hospitalized injury | Other | Construction trades, n.e.c. | Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Temporary work (buildings, facilities) Fatality Cause: Other |
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3 | 312924434 | Hospitalized injury | Other | Construction trades, n.e.c. | Distance of Fall: feet Worker Height Above Ground/Floor: feet Cause: Temporary work (buildings, facilities) Fatality Cause: Other |