Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 001 Hazard:

OSH ACT of 1970 Section (5)(a)(1): The employer did not furnish employment and a place of employment which were free from recognized hazards that caused or were likely to cause death or serious physical harm, in that employees were exposed to reactive material/chemical hazards due to the practice of draining residual liquid chemicals from 30 and 55 gallon steel drums into common containers without implementing means to prevent unwanted chemical reactions capable of causing serious physical harm to employees: On or about February 7, 2018, and at times prior, residual liquid chemicals from 30 and 55 gallon steel drums were drained throughout each shift and collected in a common container (55 gallon steel drum) consisting of comingled chemicals. Additionally, waste water from the drum washing process, which contains a sodium hydroxide solution and unknown chemical residues, was added to the common container on at least a monthly basis. The mixing of potentially reactive materials/chemicals, as well as the mixing/addition of chemical unknowns, exposed employees to reactive chemical hazards (such as, but not limited to, chemical burns, burns from flame, inhalation of toxic gases/vapors, struck-by container fragments, etc.) associated with unwanted byproducts of potential chemical reactions which include the generation of heat, the generation of gases/vapors with hazardous properties, and the generation of pressure.