Inspection Detail

Inspection: 120212782 - Lompoc, City Of

Inspection Information - Office: Labor Enforcement Task Force (Letf) Unit - South

Investigation Summary

A city maintenance department employee was working on the lighting system in a room in a city building. He was replacing all the ballasts in the lighting system as part of an energy conservation program. The employee had replaced about 500 ballasts; and, while he was working, the lighting circuits remained energized. (The supervisor stated that he had instructed the maintenance worker not to work with the circuits energized.) The employee's procedure had been to cut the ungrounded and grounded circuit conductors supplying the ballast. He would then put wire nuts on the ends of the two supply conductors and leave them hanging. Next, he would cut the secondary conductors coming from the ballast, remove the old ballast, install the new one, and reconnect the secondary conductors. He would complete the installation by connecting the ungrounded and grounded circuit conductors supplying the ballast after removing the wire nuts he had placed on their ends. While he was performing this procedure on one of the ballasts, he apparently contacted an energized part and was electrocuted.

Keywords: BALLAST--LIGHTING, LIGHTING CIRCUIT, E GI IV, ELECTRICAL, ELECTROCUTED, ELECTRICAL WORK, LOCKOUT, UNTRAINED