B & R Repair Inc. of Lemont, Illinois receives $326,000 in penalties from the US Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) after a worker fatality.
A 48-year-old worker had entered a tanker trailer at the B & R facility in Lemont to inspect it as part of the vehicle’s annual US Department of Transportation requirement.
Unfortunately, the interior had not been properly vented, and the worker was overcome from exposure to bleach and chlorine gas, found a short time later unconscious. He later died of his injuries.
The investigation by OSHA found that B & R Repair had failed to:
- identify and evaluate atmospheric hazards within the confined space of the tanker;
- train workers on the confined space program, and;
- ensure employees filled out a confined-space permit before entry into a confined space.
It also found the company had failed to equip the worker who went into the tanker to rescue the conscious employee with a retrieval system. B& R Repair also failed to implement its procedures for summoning rescue and emergency services and was found in violation of its permit-required confined space regulations.
B& R Repair was also cited for failing to provide fall protection to an employee working on top of tanker trailers, as well as failure to provide training on fall hazards, respirators, and hazard communication.
All in all, OSHA cited two willful and 10 serious violations and proposed penalties of $326,306.
“In recent years, OSHA investigated instances in which workers suffered tragic injuries because employers failed to follow appropriate procedures for ensuring healthy atmospheric conditions inside a confined space and use of adequate respiratory protection before allowing workers to enter tanks,” stated OSHA Area Director Jacob Scott in Naperville, Illinois. “The company must immediately review its confined space procedures, emergency action plans, and provide additional training to protect workers on the job.”
For information on the confined spaces OSHA guidelines, click here: www.osha.gov/confined-spaces.
The Chicago regional office of OSHA established a Regional Emphasis Program in 2021 to reduce the risks tank cleaning workers face.
The program focuses on employers in industries typically engaged in tank cleaning activities, including trucking, rail and road transportation, remediation services, material recovery, and waste management services.
B & R Repair is an American truck and trailer repair company that provides services to all makes and models of tractors, tankers, trailers, trucks, buses, and various cargo transport units. Along with the Lemont location, it has service locations in the Pennsylvania areas of Lansing and Wampum.
B& R Repairs has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with each of OSHA’s area directors, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.
Of course, all of this still doesn’t take into account the value of the loss of life of the worker, which will be looked at later, we are sure.