Fed-OSHA fines Florida company $122K after hand amputation incident

A Florida company faces a $122,000 Fed-OSHA fine for a willful violation, allegedly removing protective guards off a sheet metal cutting machine, after a 21-year-old employee lost a hand in an accident in February. The agency says removing guards on three machines exposed employees to dangerous metal shears. Miami Herald

 

Fed-OSHA hands down fines in fatal nitrogen leak at Georgia poultry processor

Fed-OSHA has fined a Georgia poultry processing company more than $595,000 for 26 alleged violations following a nitrogen leak in late January that killed six people. A freezer at the Gainesville plant malfunctioned, releasing liquid nitrogen into the plant’s air and displacing oxygen, the agency concluded. Gainesville Times

 

Fed-OSHA cites Ohio roofer for sixth time in three years

Fed-OSHA has fined an Ohio contractor more than $136,000 for allegedly exposing employees to deadly fall hazards for the sixth time in three years. Citations include two willful, two repeat and two serious violations. Richland Source (Mansfield, Ohio)

 

OR-OSHA says it will aggressively enforce emergency heat rules

Oregon OSHA says it will aggressively enforce new emergency requirements aimed at protecting employees from extreme heat. At least two Oregon employees died last month due to suspected heat-related illnesses during an unprecedented heat wave, and the agency is investigating two other recent workplace deaths as possibly heat-related. Permanent rules that have been delayed by the pandemic, are expected later this year. Oregonian/OregonLive

 

Idaho logger’s death prompts investigation

Fed-OSHA is investigating the July 20 death of an Idaho logger who was working at a timber harvesting site in the Boise National Forest. A log was being pulled up a hill with a chain device when it hit a stump and spun around, striking the 30-year-old man in the chest. He died at the scene. Idaho Statesman

 

TOSHA cites hazards after death of distribution center employee

Tennessee OSHA has completed an investigation after the March death of an employee at a distribution center who was driving a standup forklift when it went through an unguarded open dock door and fell on him. The agency cited the employer more than $6,000 for one serious and two other-than-serious violations. WRCB

 

Attorneys discuss where the mining industry stands with MHSA and what’s ahead

“Many mine operators are waiting to see if the enforcement and rulemaking pendulum that swung so widely between the Obama and Trump administrations is ready to swing back again. All of the indications to date are that it will,” write William Doran and Margaret Lopez of Ogletree Deakins. National Law Review