TranslateInspection Detail
Inspection Information - Office: Iowa | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nr: 316574011 | Report ID: 0751910 | Open Date: 06/07/2012 | ||
| Gerdau Ameristeel Us Inc. | ||||
| 1500 W. 3rd Street Wilton, IA 52778 | Union Status: Union | |||
| SIC: 3312/Steel Works, Blast Furnaces (Including Coke Ovens), and Rolling Mills | ||||
| NAICS: 331111/Iron and Steel Mills | ||||
| Mailing: 1500 W. 3rd Street, P.O. Box 3002, Wilton, IA 52778 | ||||
| Inspection Type: | Accident | |||
| Scope: | Partial | Advanced Notice: | N | |
| Ownership: | Private | |||
| Safety/Health: | Safety | Close Conference: | 06/08/2012 | |
| Close Case: | 11/09/2012 | |||
| Related Activity: | Type | ID | Safety | Health |
| Accident | 100522606 | |||
Violation Summary | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Serious | Willful | Repeat | Other | Unclass | Total | |
| Initial Violations | 5 | 5 | ||||
| Current Violations | 5 | 5 | ||||
| Initial Penalty | $25,000 | $25,000 | ||||
| Current Penalty | $25,000 | $25,000 | ||||
| FTA Amount | ||||||
| Violation Items | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| # | ID | Type | Standard | Issuance | Abate | Curr$ | Init$ | Fta$ | Contest | LastEvent | |
| 1. | 01001A | Serious | 19100132 C | 10/03/2012 | 11/19/2012 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $0 | - | ||
| 2. | 01001B | Serious | 19100335 A01 I | 10/03/2012 | 11/19/2012 | $0 | $0 | $0 | - | ||
| 3. | 01002A | Serious | 19100147 C04 II | 10/03/2012 | 11/19/2012 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $0 | - | ||
| 4. | 01002B | Serious | 19100333 B02 I | 10/03/2012 | 11/19/2012 | $0 | $0 | $0 | - | ||
| 5. | 01003 | Serious | 19100303 B01 VIII | 10/03/2012 | 10/29/2012 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $0 | - | ||
| 6. | 01004 | Serious | 19100333 B02 IIA | 10/03/2012 | 10/29/2012 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $0 | - | ||
| 7. | 01005 | Serious | 19100333 B02 IVB | 10/03/2012 | 11/19/2012 | $5,000 | $5,000 | $0 | - | ||
Accident Investigation Summary | ||||||
| Summary Nr: 200535078 | Event: 06/06/2012 | Three Employees Were Burned In Flash Arc Fire | ||||
| At approximately 9:00 a.m. on June 6, 2012, Employee #1 an electrical engineer, Employee #2 and Employee #3 electricians worked for the Gerdau Ameristeel, Wilto n, IA., and for Davenport Electric Contract Company to provide electrical mainte nance in the Shredder area. A Fluke meter, rated for a maximum of 1000 volts, wa s applied to a live circuit, energized at 4160 volts. Employee #2 replaced broke n conduit which was used to bring power to the 3000 hp Shredder Motor. Employee #3 was called to assist Employee #2. Two extra cables were found in a Shredder j unction box and Employee #1 asked Employee's #2 and #3 to trace the cables. Sing le line prints were analyzed and a connection to a capacitor was noted. Employee #1 reported that he did not notice there were two different capacitors on the d rawing. One capacitor was south of the shredder building, installed for voltage stabilization and was not labeled. The other capacitor, located in the Shredder Area electrical substation, north of the Shredder building, was for power correc tion and was labeled "CAPACITOR BANK". The Shredder was locked out at the substa tion. The breaker, in the substation panel marked "CAPACITOR BANK", was open and the panel door was initially locked out to prepare for testing. Employee #2 cal led Employee #1 to ask if the "CAPACITOR BANK" breaker could be closed because t he initial continuity test did not work. Employee #1 entered the substation encl osure to discuss the work with Employee #2 and Employee #3. Employee #1 agreed t hat it would be safe to close the breaker. The interlock, on the substation cabi net door marked "CAPACITOR BANK", was defeated so the door could remain open whe n the breaker was closed. The handle was in the "on" position. Employee #2 used a Fluke meter, rated for a maximum of 1000 volts, to try to test for ohms to con firm circuit continuity. The upstream lockout acted upon the power stabilization capacitor bank, and was not upstream of the "CAPACITOR BANK" power correction c apacitor, the meter was applied to a live circuit, energized at 4160 volts. A fa ult occurred and caused an arc flash. Employee #1 reported he heard a buzz and t hen felt the flash. He saw that Employee #2 was on fire. Employee #1 attempted t o extinguish Employee #2's clothing by rolling Employee #2 on the ground while y elling for help. Employee #4 heard a pop and saw smoke rise from the substation area and alerted the plant Emergency Response Team (ERT). Shredder Department Em ployees, who were ERT members, responded immediately with an AED, fire extinguis her and a medical equipment bag. Employee #2 was extinguished with a fire exting uisher. A polyester blanket was placed over Employee #2 to cover and prevent sho ck. Then the blanket caught on fire. The blanket was pulled away and a fire exti nguisher was used a second time to extinguish Employee #2's clothes. One respond er reported that a fire appeared to be coming from under Employee #2, so they ro lled him and patted the fire down. First aid was provided. Employee #1 reported he was approximately 8 to 10 feet away from the arc flash origin. Personal Prote ctive Equipment (PPE) worn at the time of the incident included safety glasses, a 100 polyester high visibility safety vest, denim blue jeans, hard hat w/chin s trap, steel toed work boots and a long sleeve flame resistant (ATPV 7.7 rated) s hirt. Employee #1 was burned on his hands while trying to extinguish Employee #2 . Employee #1 had flash burns to his face, with blisters in some areas. Employee #1 was taken by ambulance and kept overnight in the hospital. Employee #2 was n ot as seriously burned on his head and neck as he was on the lower portions of h is body. Employee #2's pants were consumed in the fire, except for part of the w aistband and approximately 6 inches of the bottom of the pant legs. Employee #2 was flown via medical helicopter to a hospital burn unit, where he was admitted with 55 percent of his body bur | ||||||
| Keywords: elec protect equip, electric arc, power line worker, fire, capacitor, electric meter, electric conductor, electrical box, buried | ||||||
| Inspection | Degree | Nature | Occupation | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 316574011 | Hospitalized injury | Burn/Scald(Heat) | Electrical and electronic engineers | ||
| 2 | 316574011 | Hospitalized injury | Burn/Scald(Heat) | Electricians | ||
| 3 | 316574011 | Hospitalized injury | Burn/Scald(Heat) | Electricians | ||