Industrial Accident Lawyer Blog

Work injuries occur with some frequency at sea. While working on an offshore rig can be dangerous, proper workplace safety mechanisms and procedures can help reduce the frequency of work injury or death.

On April 20, 2010, the Deepwater Horizon exploded, taking the lives of 11 workers and injuring scores more. The explosion was preventable, was preventable had either Transocean or BP used a blowout preventer----a mandatory safety device which is common. At the time of the explosion, the Deepwater Horizon was two days away from capping the oil well and handing off the pumping responsibilities to a production platform. During the disconnection process, the rig suffered a blowout. The rig's blowout preventer---a 450 ton series of valves developed to prevent a gusher if drilling mud controll is overwhelmed---failed, allowing oil to escape into the Gulf of Mexico.

Continue reading "Deepwater Horizon: Transocean Rig Explodes, Workers Die." »

Another oil refinery explosion has caused work injury and worker death, and has also led to the fling of workers compensation claims, this time in New Mexico. The Navajo Refinery, owned by Dallas, Texas based Holly Corp., exploded because the plant operator failed to follow safety instructions. According to a recently filed lawsuit, several workers were injured the the explosion, some suffering burn injury. Apparently, a large tank used to produce tar exploded, causing this incident.

Continue reading "Refinery Explosion Leads to Death; OSHA Investgating" »

A state panel looking into the cause of the Middletown power plant explosion has begun its work. The panel, led by a federal judge, will identify the cause and origin of the explosion. The February 7, 2010 explosion killed 5 and injured scores more. It occurred when a natural gas pipeline was being purged. According to some reports, workers at the Kleen Energy power plant were overworked and working overtime at the time of the Middletown Explosion.

The Flynn Law Firm is a work injury, industrial accident, and Workers Compensation lawyer currently investigating claims related to the Kleen Energy explosion. If you have been involved in the Middletown explosion, you may be able to make a third party claim against contractors on the property and even Kleen Energy itself, as well as a claims against manufacturers of equipment, valves, and testing devices which were being used at the Kleen Energy power plant on February 7 and may have caused the explosion.

The Middletown, Conneticut Kleen Energy power plant explosion investigation is underway, with OSHA and the Chemical Safety Board both on the property to determine the cause of the Kleen Power explosion and work injuries.

According to initial reports, the Kleen Energy power plant explosionoccurred while the plant was being built, and the property was occupied largely by construction workers and contractors. The blast occurred during the process of purging an underground, high-pressure natural gas pipeline running through the facility. There are reports that welding operations were not halted during this gas purge, and it appears that non-essential personnel were allowed to remain near the gas line, which, if true, would violate OSHA standards and commonsense. As a result, 5 workers were killed, with scores more injured.

The Flynn Law Firm is a refinery explosion, work accident, and industrial accident law firm, is currently investigating claims related to the Kleen Energy explosion in Middletown. If you were at the Kleen Energy Middletown power plant at the time of the explosion, or you were injured, you are entitled to bring a claim for your injuries. Contact the Flynn Law Firm today.

Recently, the Chemical Safety Board released its Investigation Report related to the refinery explosion and Georgia workplace injuries which occurred as the Savannah Foods refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia on February 7, 2008. The report is 84 pages long, and outlines, in detail, the problems with the Imperial refinery which led to the blast.

The Chemical Safety Board report not only discuss the vast safety problems caused by the Imperial entities, but also discusses, and blames, other companies for contributing to the conditions which caused explosion. The American Institute of Baking provides audits and training on both food safety and occupational safety. According to the CSB, the AIB would assess the operations and practices of the Port Wentworth refinery and issue a participation certificate when the Imperial entities passed the audit. In May of 2007, the AIB issued a "superior" rating. AIB was well positioned, according to the CSB, to help the Imperial entities, its member companies, become informed about the hazards of combustible dust and could revise its training materials to include more information about the dangers of combustible dust.

The Flynn Law Firm is one of the Georgia worker injury attorneys currently representing workers injured in the Imperial disaster, and has learned about the details of the refinery explosion during the last year of litigation with certain Imperial entities.

As a Georgia Workers' Comp lawyer and Atlanta injury attorney representing workers in refinery explosions, boiler explosions, and other workplace accidents, I often see tragic accidents occur when a plant, or large piece of equipment at an industrial facility, is brought online or shutdown. Recently, a large work accident occurred at a refinery in Utah while the refinery's crude unit was being restarted. Officials from the Tesoro refinery said liquid hydrocarbons were released from a flare stack during the restart effort after a power outage.

Oil companies, paper companies, and other industrial employers and premises owners have detailed checklists and procedures for firing equipment and boilers after a shutdown. Dangerous vapors and chemicals, like liquid hydrocarbons, should be evacuated from something like a crude unit, and the managers onsite should verify, and re-verify, that the unit is safe to fire prior to actually bringing it back online. Often, accidents like the Tesoro facility are brought about by management's rush to get the refinery back in operation and a willful ignorance of internal safety procedures or OSHA guidelines regarding facility re-start after an outage.

OSHA has cited British Petroleum an additional $87 Million for failing to complete safety upgrades mandated under a previous settlement between OSHA and BP related to the massive 2005 refinery explosion at the BP Texas City refinery. OSHA also filed an additional 439 new safety violations which it alleges are "willful." The willful violations are primarily related to pressure release mechanisms and safety systems at the Texas City refinery.

In keeping with its general litigious course of conduct, BP is challenging the additional OSHA citations and is also claiming that the work to be performed under the previous settlement agreement did not have to be performed until September of this year.

The 2005 explosion killed 15 workers and caused hundreds of workplace injuries and burn injuries. Given the safety problems at the BP refinery, some people, including industrial injury lawyers and public servants, believe the closing of the BP refinery remains a possibility.

A judge has ordered that OSHA attorneys have the right to question Imperial Sugar executives and former employees about the February 7, 2008 refinery explosion in Port Wentworth, Georgia. OSHA lawyers submitted evidence that the witnesses who have been previously deposed have relevant information and should be questioned again. OSHA will likely focus on whether the alleged OSHA violations, which caused numerous Georgia workplace injuries and led to several Savannah workers' compensation claims, were "willful."

The United States Chemical Safety Board has released a video about the dangers of Combustible Dust and how such dust can cause Refinery Explosions and workplace accidents. Combustible dust fires and explosions continue to occur frequently, despite the well known risk combustible dust poses to workers. An excess of combustible sugar dust at the Imperial refinery in Port Wentworth, Georgia caused that facility to explode, killing 14 and injuring dozens more.

OSHA has fined ConocoPhillips for OSHA violations at a refinery in Linden, New Jersey. The four citations received by ConocoPhillips were classified as "serious" and outlined systemic problems at the facility like a lack of guidelines for dangerous work with flammable liquid. An OSHA official noted the violations could have led to a refinery explosion, or second and third degree burns.

A lack of written guidelines for employees and contractors can often lead to a fatal workplace accident or explosion. The Flynn Law Firm is currently involved in workplace explosion litigation in multiple jurisdictions where safety guidelines were either non-existent or not properly communicated to workers.

The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) recently warned industrial workers to not clear natural gas lines indoors. CSB investigators believe the Slim Jim Explosion occurred while contractors installing a water heater vented natural gas inside the building, leading to the explosion which killed three and injured dozens more at the ConAgra Foods plant just south of Raleigh, North Carolina.

Continue reading "Natural Gas Found To Be Cause of Slim Jim Explosion at ConAgra Foods Plant" »

On September 24, 2009, the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigaion Board (CSB) issued its investigation report related to the Imperial Sugar refinery explosion which occurred on February 7, 2008. There are a number of refinery explosion lawyers currently pursing claims against certain companies related to this explosion, and this report is a groudbreaking development in that litigation.

The CSB, in its detailed report, determined that the dust explosion began in an enclosed steel belt conveyor located beneath the sugar silos at the refinery. This enclosure allowed explosive sugar dust to accumulate. When an unknown source ignited the accumulated sugar dust, an explosion occurred.

Continue reading "Imperial Sugar faulted for Refinery Explosion" »

A proposed fine by Cal-OSHA (California's own work place safety agency) has been issued against ExxonMobil for the burn injury and death of a refinery worker at one of its refineries in California.

Nelson Tan suffered serious second- and third-degree burns over 85 percent of his body on when he was struck by a blast of boiling water and steam. He subsequently died from his injuries while in a local burn unit.

Mr. Tan's death was the third in the last six years at ExxonMobil's Torrence, California refinery. The Cal-OSHA citation indicates ExxonMobil failed to implement its own written procedure, which led to Mr. Tan's burn injury and subsequent death.

Refinery explosions and burn injuries are almost always caused by the oil company's failure to perform adequate hazard analysis, failure to follow its own written procedure, or some other negligent (or, sometimes, reckless) act by the refinery owner. Burn injuries and refinery explosions don't have to happen, and can be prevented by safe practices by the employer. If you have been injured in a workplace accident or refinery explosion, you should contact a Georgia workplace accident attorney to determine what rights you have.