Text For Citation: 02 Item/Group: 001 Hazard: CONFINED

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 the hazards of oxygen dificiency and/or dangerous accumulations of toxic vapors (such as toluene), while entering an ink tank on or about October 22-23, 1992, to remove solvent-containing ink sludge. These exposures could result in asphyxiation, chemical poisoning and/or death. The hazards resulted from deficiencies in the company's confined space entry program, to wit: (a) Ineffective retrieval system to remove disabled or unconscious worker from the confined space. (b) Failure to provide rescue capability for individuals in a confined space should an emergency arise. (c) Lack of supervisory controls over the work being performed in the tank. (d) Ineffective ventilation of the confined space prior to and during entry. (e) Ineffective sampling of the confined space for the presence of sufficient oxygen, and the absence of hazardous levels of flammable vapors and toxics prior to and during entry. (f) Failure to perform continuous testing of the atmosphere within the tank for levels of toxic air contaminants during mucking operations. Among other methods, feasible ways to correct these hazards are: (a) Provide mechanical retrieval equipment. (b) Make arrangements with offsite emergency response personnel who are capable of performing a rescue, and who are familiar with the premises and can respond in a timely manner. (c) Ensure that the individual in charge of the entry does not perform other tasks which may interfere with the performance of duties necessary for a safe entry. (d) Ensure that ventilation is designed and arranged so that all areas of the confined space are effectively ventilated. It is particularly important to consider the source and path of make-up air. (e) Ensure that sampling methodology takes into consideration the shape and remoteness of areas within the confined space. Confined spaces which are deep may require that a probe or extension be added to the sampling equipment to ensure that, within all areas in the confined space, levels of oxygen are sufficient and concentrations of flammable gases and toxics are within acceptable ranges. (f) Continuous monitoring should be performed where operations within the confined space may cause levels of airborne toxic contaminants to change.