Inspection Detail

Inspection: 120124052 - Mobil Oil Corp

Inspection Information - Office: Long Beach District Office

Inspection Nr: 120124052

Report ID: 0950635

Date Opened: 03/13/1996

Site Address:
Mobil Oil Corp
3700 W 190th St
Torrance, CA 90503

Mailing Address:
3700 W 190th St, Torrance, CA 90509

Union Status: Union

SIC:2911

NAICS: 0

Inspection Type: Accident

Scope: Partial

Advanced Notice: N

Ownership: Private

Safety/Health: Health

Close Conference: 07/05/1996

Emphasis:

Case Closed: 04/28/1999

Related Activity
Type	Activity Nr	Safety	Health
Accident	362385072

Violation Summary
Violations/Penalties	Serious	Willful	Repeat	Other	Unclass	Total
Initial Violations	3		1			4
Current Violations	2		1	1		4
Initial Penalty	$9,430	$0	$12,500	$0	$0	$21,930
Current Penalty	$1,745	$0	$4,250	$1,060	$0	$7,055
FTA Penalty	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0	$0

Violation Items
#	Citation ID	Citaton Type	Standard Cited	Issuance Date	Abatement Due Date	Current Penalty	Initial Penalty	FTA Penalty	Contest	Latest Event
1.	01001	Other	3382 A	07/29/1996	08/06/1996	$1,060	$6,250	$0	02/05/1997	J - ALJ Decision
2.	02001	Serious	5162 C	07/29/1996	08/06/1996	$1,590	$1,590	$0	02/05/1997	J - ALJ Decision
3.	03001	Serious	5162 D	07/29/1996	08/06/1996	$155	$1,590	$0	02/05/1997	J - ALJ Decision
4.	04001	Repeat	6815 A	07/29/1996	08/01/1996	$4,250	$12,500	$0	02/05/1997	J - ALJ Decision

Investigation Summary

Investigation Nr: 170187124

Event: 03/13/1996

Two employees burned by hydrogen fluoride

At 2:30 a.m. on March 13, 1996, Employees #1 and #2 were preparing to remove a blind from the discharge line of pump #5G8A in hydrogen fluoride alkylation unit #5. Employee #1 went to the operations office and was told that the blind was ready to be pulled. Employee #2 gathered the proper tools and checked the vacuum gauge to confirm that the line had 20 inches of vacuum. Neither the maintenance supervisor nor the operations foreman initiated a fresh air permit check, which would have indicated if type B protection would be necessary. Instead, they believed that type C protection would be adequate since they had used it on previous occasions for this job. Employee #1 used a wrench to remove seven of the eight bolts holding the blind without any leakage. When he removed the last bolt, hydrogen fluoride mist struck him in the face. Employee #2 was standing by with the water hose and was also hit in the face by hydrogen fluoride. Both employees suffered chemical burns and Employee #1 was hospitalized. The bleeder line from this pump had become plugged and had never been repaired. This meant that the upper side of the pump was still under pressure and the vacuum was only being drawn from the lower side of the pump. Employees #1 and #2 were unaware of this condition.

Keywords: CAUSTIC, INADEQUATE MAINT, PPE, HYDROGEN FLUORIDE, WORK RULES, CLOGGED, CHEMICAL BURN, CHEMICAL VAPOR, FACE, ACCIDENTAL DISCHARGE

Investigated Inspection
#	Inspection	Age	Sex	Degree of Injury	Nature of Injury	Occupation
1	120124052			Hospitalized injury	Burn(Chemical)	Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters
2	120124052			Non Hospitalized injury	Burn(Chemical)	Plumbers, pipefitters and steamfitters

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