Inspection Detail

Inspection: 300050614 - American Hydraulics, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Omaha Area Office

Inspection Nr: 300050614

Report ID: 0728900

Date Opened: 06/16/1997

Site Address:
American Hydraulics, Inc.
3701 North 16th Street
Omaha, NE 68110

Mailing Address:
3701 North 16th Street, Omaha, NE 68111

Union Status: NonUnion

SIC:3743

NAICS: 0

Inspection Type: Referral

Scope: Partial

Advanced Notice: N

Ownership: Private

Safety/Health: Safety

Close Conference: 06/17/1997

Planning Guide: Safety-Manufacturing

Emphasis:

Case Closed: 10/17/1997

Related Activity
Type	Activity Nr	Safety	Health
Referral	200050334	Yes

Violation Summary
Violations/Penalties	Serious	Willful	Repeat	Other	Unclass	Total
Initial Violations	3					3
Current Violations	1			1		2
Initial Penalty	$13,500	$0	$0	$0	$0	$13,500
Current Penalty	$4,500	$0	$0	$4,500	$0	$9,000
FTA Penalty	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0

Violation Items
#	Citation ID	Citaton Type	Standard Cited	Issuance Date	Abatement Due Date	Current Penalty	Initial Penalty	FTA Penalty	Latest Event	Note
1.	01001	Serious	5A0001	09/17/1997	10/06/1997	$4,500	$4,500	$0	I - Informal Settlement	Citation has been deleted.
2.	01002A	Other	19100179 J03	09/17/1997	09/22/1997	$4,500	$4,500	$0	I - Informal Settlement
3.	01002B	Serious	19100179 N02 II	09/17/1997	09/22/1997	$0	$0	$0	-
4.	01003	Serious	19100252 A02 XIIIC	09/17/1997	10/06/1997	$4,500	$4,500	$0	-

Investigation Summary

Investigation Nr: 200050151

Event: 06/12/1997

Employee burned when cutting torch ignites hydraulic fluid

Employee #1, who worked for a company that remanufactured railcar shock absorbers, had just returned from lunch and entered the drain tank area. His job was to drain the hydraulic fluid from old railcar shocks. There were two basic types of shocks: one is pressurized with nitrogen gas and the other does not have a gas charge. The three manufacturers of railcar shocks each use a slightly different external configuration. At the time of the accident, the employee was preparing to drain a Freight Master gas-charged unit. The first step should have been to drain off the gas charge . Instead, Employee #1 began using a cutting torch to apply heat to the drain plug without releasing the gas charge. This particular drain plug was a glass sight and it was not normally necessary to apply heat for removal. Since the unit was still pressurized, when the glass sight broke from the heat, the hydraulic fluid came out in a vaporized form. It was ignited by the flame from the cutting torch, resulting in an explosion or fireball. The entire work area was engulfed in flames. Employee #1 sustained third-degree burns over 90 percent of his body.

Keywords: BURN, HEAT, VAPOR, FLAMMABLE VAPORS, WORK RULES, FIRE, HYDRAULIC FLUID, TORCH, EXPLOSION, HIGH PRESSURE

Investigated Inspection
#	Inspection	Age	Sex	Degree of Injury	Nature of Injury	Occupation
1	300050614			Hospitalized injury	Burn/Scald(Heat)	Occupation not reported

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