OSHA Accident Investigation · Summary #14496269
MALLORY FARMS
CHATFIELD, AR—
Event description
PROPANE VAPORS EXPLODED, BURNING EMPLOYEE TO DEATH
Investigation abstract
EMPLOYEE #1 WENT TO PROCURE SOME LIQUID PROPANE WITH A PLASTIC BUCKET. HE INTEND -FUEL APPLICATIONS APPEARS TO BE A COMMON PRACTICE ON MANY FARMS. ED TO USE THE LIQUID PROPANE TO FREEZE SOME "SLEEVES" WHICH HE AND TWO OTHER EMP LOYEES WERE INSTALLING IN AN OLD TRACTOR'S ENGINE. THE PROPANE TANK WAS USED TO FILL TANKS ON FARM MACHINERY, AND WAS DESIGNED TO TRANSFER THE PROPANE AS A LIQU ID. THERE WERE NO WITNESSES TO THE ACTUAL EXPLOSION, BUT ONE INDIVIDUAL OBSERVED EMPLOYEE #1 PRACTICALLY OBSCURED BY A PROPANE VAPOR CLOUD. A SHORT TIME LATER A LOUD EXPLOSION OCCURRED, SHAKING SOME NEARBY SHOPS. EMPLOYEE #1 WAS SEVERELY BU RNED, AND TAKEN TO A HOSPITAL. HE BEGAN A GRADUAL RECOVERY, THEN DIED SUDDENLY, 9 DAYS LATER, FROM "COMPLICATIONS". THE PRACTICE OF USING LIQUID PROPANE FOR NON
Victim
-
#1 Fatality Age 64 M
- Nature of injury
- 5
- Part of body
- 19
- Event type
- 14
- Source
- 16
- Occupation code
- 999
- Human factor
- 6
- Environmental factor
- 7
- Task assigned
- 2
Codes shown verbatim from OSHA's accident-investigation database. A human-readable decoder is coming in a future release once the accident_lookup2 dictionary is loaded.