Accident: 170381321 - Injured In Fall Through Shattered Window

At approximately 11:00 a.m. on July 15, 1998, Employee #1, a foreman glazier for D and C Glass and Aluminum, Inc., and two 2 coworkers were replacing a broken window on the fourth floor of an office building in San Francisco. Employee #1 was on an 8 ft stepladder installing clips on a tempered glass window that was already set into the channels when, for some reason, the glass shattered. Employee #1 went through the opening and fell 32 ft onto an adjacent roof. He suffered a fractured left arm and fractured right ankle.

fall, broken glass, construction, fracture, ankle, arm, stepladder, unstable position, equipment failure

Accident: 201090362 - Injured When Tire Separates From Rim

On July 28, 1996, Employee #1, age 18, was working in the tire changing area at Pacific Coast Tire when a customer asked him to remove a tire from a wheel and replace it with another one supplied by the customer. Employee #1 took the first tire off the wheel and began installing the second tire on the rim. While inflating the tire, it separated from the rim and flew into the air. The tire hit a glass section of an overhead door, and Employee #1 was struck by flying debris. He sustained a broken arm and multiple lacerations. Subsequent investigation revealed that Employee #1 was trying to mount a 16 in. tire on a 16 1/2 in. rim. The tire and wheel were on a tire changing machine, but were not screwed down.

air pressure, tire rim, high pressure, inflating, unsecured, tire, fracture, work rules, broken glass, flying object

Accident: 170903843 - Eyes Injured By Falling Pieces Of Broken Glass

At approximately 9:50 a.m. on March 12, 1996, Employee #1, of the NASA Jet Propulsion Lab, Pasadena, CA, was walking on a side road approximately 15 to 20 ft east of Building #264. A contractor was installing new window panels into the nine-story building. An approximately 90 lb, 92 in. by 47 in. window panel on the eighth floor shattered for no apparent reason. Employee #1 was struck by falling pieces of broken glass and sustained cuts to both eyes. The area directly below the scaffold had been barricaded and none of the contractor's employees were injured.

falling object, laceration, struck by, broken glass, eye

Accident: 170831036 - Injured When Struck By Flying Glass

An acrylamide monomer mix initiated viscosity while in a 500 gallon sparge tank. The centrifugal pump system could not transfer the monomer mix to the sparger or the fill tank. Employees closed the valve of the vent line to the sparge tank in order to build pressure to blow the monomer mix to the sparger and fill tank. Pressure increased to approximately 25 psi but air was leaking around the sight glass. Employee #1 attempted to torque the bolts of the sight glass when the glass shattered and a piece struck him in his right eye. Employee #1, who was not wearing safety glasses, was hospitalized. Further investigation found that the employer had not conducted an assessment of the facility to determine the necessary personal protective equipment needed by employees. The employer had not instructed or trained employees in the wear of personal protective equipment.

ppe, eye, struck by, broken glass, flying object, untrained, work rules

Accident: 170892426 - Chemist Burned In Chemical Explosion/Fire

At approximately 9:30 p.m. on April 15, 1995, Employee #1, a chemist, was working in a research laboratory with lithium aluminum hydride and other chemicals under a laboratory hood. Lithium aluminum hydride is a pyrophoric compound and is especially hazardous due to its extremely flammable/explosive properties. After some preliminary trial runs, Employee #1 scaled up the quantity of reagents, including lithium aluminum hydride, in the chemical reaction under study, but he did not use shielding or appropriate protective clothing. For some reason, he lost control of the reaction and an explosion/fire resulted. Employee #1 was struck by glass from the shattered reaction vessel and was thrown back by the force of the explosion. His flammable clothing caught fire and was eventually extinguished by his lab partner, but not before he sustained burns over 25 percent of his body. Employee #1 required hospitalization.

chemical reaction, lost control, explosion, broken glass, fire, burn, ppe, work rules, testing lab, process safety

Accident: 170697528 - Injured When Struck In Eye By Flying Glass

Employee #1 was working as a sweeper operator for Air-O-Sweep, a company that sweeps parking lots at shopping centers and businesses. He stated that he heard a noise and looked out the window as he turned to the right. A 75 percent full glass Pepsi bottle came out of the sweeper area and was rolling away from the sweeper when it exploded. Employee #1 was struck in the right eye by flying glass. He was hospitalized.

broken glass, struck by, eye, flying object, explosion