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

Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970: 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 employees were exposed to a struck-by hazard from exploding display fireworks: (a)Buck Swank Stadium behind Palmyra Area Middle School - The employer did not adequately protect employees from the hazard of ground level explosions of aerial shells. Employees fired Lidu 3-inch peanut shells (two-break aerial shells) from HDPE mortars positioned in wooden mortar racks. One of the peanut shells malfunctioned and exploded at ground level, blowing apart its mortar and wooden rack and prematurely lighting off additional aerial shells, one or more of which also exploded at ground level. Flying shrapnel from the ground level explosions caused injury to an employee, on or about July 4, 2010. Among other methods, one feasible and acceptable abatement method to correct this hazard includes not firing multiple-break shells from mortar racks as specified in the National Fire Protection Association NFPA 1123 Code for Fireworks Display, 2010 Edition, Section 4.5.2 "Single-break shells greater than 8 inches in. (203 mm) in diameter and multiple-break shells shall not be fired from mortar racks." VERIFICATION REQUIREDTION