Inspection Detail

Inspection: 315830448 - Delicato Family Vineyards

Inspection Information - Office: American Canyon District Office

Investigation Summary

At approximately 1:30 p.m. on June 4, 2013, Employee #1, a cellar technician of Delicato Family Vineyards, suffered back injuries when a sudden pour/rush of wine from a large tank washed him approximately 15 feet away. On the day of the accident, Employee #1 and Employee #2 were assigned to rack wine from the barrels to tank #41. They were able to finish racking 124 barrels of red wine for 4 to 5 hours which were to be pumped back to the barrels the following day. After completion of the wine racking, Employee #3, a supervisor, instructed Employee #1 and Employee #2 to do sanitation of the lines in preparation for the next day. Employee #1 just finished setting the pump in front of the door of tank #41 and was preparing to do the sanitation when the bottom door spindle/handle of tank #1 broke off. The weld that secured the spindle to the nut failed, causing the bottom door to swing open allowing a sudden pour/rush of wine that swept Employee #1 against the opposite tank before flushing him about 15 feet away from where was initially standing. Employee #1 suffered severe bruising on his lower body parts that resulted in a three day hospitalization at the Queen of the Valley Hospital in Napa, CA.

Keywords: BACK, SPINDLE, SPILL, TANK