Contact with hot objects or substances · Second degree heat (thermal) burns
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Koppers, Inc., 810 Koppers Road, FOLLANSBEE, WEST VIRGINIA 26037
on — Second degree heat (thermal) burns, affecting the nonclassifiable.
Final narrative
An employee was clearing an unloading pump for maintenance. He applied steam, had the pump blocked in, and was relieving pressure on the unloading hose. When he began to loosen the hose, hot water and condensate sprayed onto his clothes and skin. He was hospitalized with first and second degree burns.
An employee was steaming a pavement sealer when a gasket failed. Hot pavement sealer base blew out and struck the employee, burning the back of both legs and the right knee.
On December 16, 2015, at approximately 2:52p.m., an employee was hospitalized after receiving burns to his neck, ears, head, and hands. The employee was preparing to unload a coal tar pitch railcar. The line on the railcar was opened without relieving pressure and material sprayed onto the worker.
An employee connected a steam line to a hose to clean equipment when the fitting broke loose. They were struck by steam in the left inner thigh, resulting in burns that required hospitalization.
An employee was making tea when she noticed tea grinds were collecting on the side and water was no longer dripping through the funnel. The employee was checking the funnel when boiling water and tea grinds spilled onto the left side of her body. The employee sustained burns to her neck, back, and arm.
An employee had turned off the ball valve on a waterpipe system and was removing the plug when the coupling system attached to the strainer came apart. Hot water sprayed on his arm and back, resulting in first- and second-degree burns that required surgery.
An employee was using a shovel to remove waste vermiculite from molten zinc. The metal had been placed in a bin and partially hardened. The employee broke through the partially hardened metal; still-molten metal flowed to the employee's steel-toed right boot and entered through the cloth boot tongue. The employee suffered a third-degree burn to the right foot and was hospitalized.
More severe injuries in this industry (NAICS 325194)
An employee was realigning a portable conveyor belt when the machine dropped and crushed their left index finger. The finger was amputated at the first knuckle.
An employee was venting a 275-gallon intermediate bulk container to facilitate gravity feeding. He stepped up onto the platform of the secondary containment to gain access to the center cap. While doing so, he lost his footing and fell from the platform (25.5 inches above grade) to the concrete floor and suffered a fractured left tibia and fibula.
At around 2:00 AM, an employee was troubleshooting low suction on a housekeeping vacuum system. The employee was clearing a blockage when a rotary valve in the chute under the dust silo hopper closed and amputated his right index fingertip.
An employee was conducting routine maintenance on a mixer. New lid pins had been installed, and the employee was rotating by hand to ensure they had been installed correctly. The employee's left middle finger was caught between the lid and top of a pin. The momentum from the mixer continued, causing a crushing injury to the finger. The employee underwent a medical amputation from the top knuckle to the tip of the finger.
An employee was climbing down a 15-foot multipurpose ladder. The employee fell about 8 feet, landing on the concrete floor and the ladder itself. The employee suffered several injuries, all on the right side: broken ribs, a broken sternum, a broken temporal bone, broken shoulder, multiple fractures to the cheekbone, and a brain bleed.
An employee was rolling up the landing gear on his trailer when the handle began to unwind and struck his face, fracturing his jaw. The employee was hospitalized and required surgery.