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 were causing or likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees, in that workers were exposed to excessive heat. a) On or about August 11, 2021, employees of PBM Nutritionals LLC. were exposed to the hazards of excessive heat while working on the third floor of the drying tower as they manually cleared hardened powdered baby food from clogged cyclones. Multiple employees were exposed to elevated heat levels and worked for approximately two hours in the drying tower when an employee collapsed. Emergency medical services were summoned, resuscitation efforts were administered, but the employee was pronounced dead at the scene. The indoor temperature at the time the employee collapsed was 110.9 degrees Fahrenheit. The employer had not implemented an adequate heat stress illness prevention program. The employer's heat illness prevention efforts for the personnel sent to clear the cyclone lacked acclimatization procedures, to ensure that employee(s) were gradually introduced to the full working conditions (workload and duration). A formalized work/rest schedule that actively monitored employees' exposure in the hot environment, integrated environmental measurements, and which accounted for the cumulative effects the workers' PPE would have on their thermal load, was not implemented by the employer. Feasible and acceptable methods to abate this hazard include, but are not limited to: 1) Implement a heat stress illness prevention program using the information documented in the NIOSH Criteria for a Recommended Standard: Occupational Exposure to Hot Environments, Revised Criteria 2016. 2) Implement the company protocols including "Permit to Work in Heat" based on Wet Bulb Globe Temperature (WBGT) information. Existing company protocols discuss WBGT monitoring and the use of wearable technology with predictive alarms and cooling vests. Alternatively, take steps to reduce environmental temperatures and eliminate the heat hazard prior to assigning work in hot location. 3) Develop and implement a formalized work/rest regimen based on actual working conditions and WBGT data, in accordance with the above-referenced NIOSH Criteria Document. 4) Develop and implement work practices for monitoring employees for signs and symptoms of heat-related illness, including but not limited to the use of a "buddy system" where paired employees continuously monitor each other. Develop guidelines for the removal of employees from hazardous conditions when recognized through worksite monitoring. 5) Develop and implement formalized acclimatization work practices in accordance with the above-referenced NIOSH Criteria Document and limit work assignments into hot environments to just acclimated employees. 6) Develop a medical surveillance and management program that identifies employees medically vulnerable to work in hot environments. Provide employees with information on certain medical conditions and medications that may increase the risk of developing heat-related illnesses. Advise employees to consult with their doctors or pharmacist if they have questions about whether they are at increased risk of heat-related illnesses because of health conditions they have and/or medications they take.