Text For Citation: 01 Item/Group: 006 Hazard:

29 CFR 1910.269(d)(6)(i): Before an authorized or affected employee turns off a machine or equipment, the authorized employee shall have knowledge of the type and magnitude of the energy, the hazards of the energy to be controlled, and the method or means to control the energy: (a) Heat Recovery Steam Generator (HRSG) - On or about April 29, 2025, and at times prior thereto, at the Hay Road combined cycle facility, the employer did not ensure that authorized and affected employees understood the type and magnitude of hazardous energy present in the HRSG low-pressure drum, nor the method to control it before opening the manway. Operators were unaware that the energy source included both positive and negative pressure differentials, specifically, vacuum suction that can form during cool-down. They did not know that the potential energy from a pressure differential could cause an inrush of air strong enough to violently pull the door inward and strike a worker. The method to control this energy, opening vent valves and verifying equalized pressure, was not taught or reinforced. As a result, an employee was fatally struck when the inward-swinging manway door was drawn inward by vacuum.