Exposure through intact tissue · Chemical burns, corrosions degree unspecified
At a glance
Federal OSHA recorded a severe workplace injury
at Republic Services, 6503 Thompson Rd., BAYTOWN, TEXAS 77521
on — Chemical burns, corrosions degree unspecified, affecting the Forearm(s).
Final narrative
An employee was filling up a trailer with garbage juice and came in contact with the garbage juice or a caustic fluid, resulting in burns to the right forearm.
Hospitalized Forearm(s) Chemicals and hazardous materials unspecified
On June 24, 2025, at 3:25 p.m., an employee had just finished dumping his truck at the recycling facility when they took a break in their truck. They began to experience signs of heat-related illness and left the cab of the truck before temporarily losing consciousness and collapsing. The employee was hospitalized due to dehydration, heat exhaustion, and acute kidney distress.
An employee was servicing the compactor. They were reconnecting the turnbuckle on a receiver box when the turnbuckle slipped and fell, crushing the employee's left middle fingertip. The employee was hospitalized for surgery.
An employee was tarping and strapping down a garbage container when they slipped on broken glass on the floor and fell. The employee sustained a dislocated shoulder and a brain bleed.
An employee was removing a hose from a chemical tank after filling the tank with hexamethylenediamine (HMD). He checked the line to ensure that the hose was clear, then disconnected the hose at the connection. Residual chemical sprayed onto his face, causing a second-degree burn. He was hospitalized.
A shipping/receiving operator was working on a loading rack, loading a railcar. A 2-inch discharge cap failed and released pressure along with sulfuric acid from the railcar. The acid sprayed onto the employee, who suffered burns to the chest and the lower facial area. The employee was hospitalized.
An employee was pressure washing truck scales when they were splashed with water and an unknown chemical on their leg and immediately experienced a burning sensation. The employee was hospitalized with a chemical burn and required surgery.
An employee was on a ladder disconnecting a 1-inch hose, known to have last carried acrylic acid that had been drained. When the hose was disconnected, residual acid dripped onto the employee's shoulder/arm area, causing a second-degree chemical burn.
Employees were removing scaffolding that was used to repair an ion exchange tank. The line was undergoing the regen process when a piece of scaffold struck a PVC pipe that transported hydrochloric acid (HCl). The injured employee was placing material inside a scaffold rack when he was sprayed in the face with HCl and sustained chemical burns to his eyes, face, chest, right arm, and left leg.
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