Inspection Detail

Inspection: 120060561 - Unocal

Inspection Information - Office: Labor Enforcement Task Force (Letf) Unit - South

Investigation Summary

At approximately 7:00 p.m. on December 7, 1995, Employee #1 and two coworkers were removing coke from a drum, an 80 ft high by 10 ft diameter tank. The employer has two drums and the coke removal process is done approximately every 18 hours on each drum. There are two written procedures for this job: the drum switch, which involves cooling and draining; and hot bolting bottom head, which involves removing and installing the top drum head and bottom head. The removal process was being done on the D102 drum, which normally takes approximately 3 hours to complete. When Employee #1 and the coworkers were installing the bottom head, hot water came out the bottom head, which had an approximately 4 in. gap before it was bolted up. Employee #1 was unable to get away and could not see where he was going. He climbed through a guardrail and fell approximately 24 ft. He was hospitalized. The 14 in. overhead line, which contained some hot water, had a leaky valve and steam was going into the line. There was no blind on the line and the line was not disconnected or disaligned. Also, the bleeder between the two steam seals was closed. A citation was issued to the employer.

Keywords: BURN, LEAK, WORK RULES, EQUIPMENT FAILURE, STEAM, VALVE, HOT WATER