Accident: 170363154 - Burned By Caustic Mixture

Employee #1, a sanitizer in the juice department of a fruit processing plant, was bailing out tank #1, which was used in the manufacture of fruit juice. This was part of his normal duty of cleaning and sanitizing the juice tanks and pipelines. The bail-out procedure calls for the tank to be filled to the top with cold water and liquid caustic, then heated to 212 degrees F for a given time. Employee #1 was adding the liquid caustic when he ran out, so he went outside to get some dry caustic powder. He turned on the heat to the tank before he left; when he returned, the tank was between 180 and 200 degrees F. Employee #1 poured in approximately 2 lb of caustic powder, which caused an immediate eruption of the liquid in the tank. The caustic mixture splashed all over the left side of his body, and he suffered second-degree burns on his arm, leg, and face. Employee #1 was hospitalized at Gridley Hospital for four days.

chemical, chemical burn, caustic, cleaning, work rules, chemical reaction, hot water

Accident: 170205900 - Back Burned By Hot Water

At approximately 10:30 a.m. on January 7, 2000, Employee #1, a steamfitter, was ventilating the plumbing system on the seventh floor of a building and inspecting for any leaks. He was using a stepladder to access the false ceiling where the pipes and valves were installed. As he was working, he unknowingly engaged a valve handle and hot water was discharged. It ran down his back, resulting in second-degree burns. He turned off the valve before climbing down the stepladder. Employee #1 was transported to St. Francis Hospital for treatment.

construction, stepladder, valve, back, accidental discharge, burn, struck against, hot water

Accident: 740654 - Burned By Water From Hot Rotary Coil

On August 14, 1999, Employee #1 was attempting to find the source of a leak in a hot rotary coil. He locked out the in-feed steam valves and back-feed valves and then turned the rotary coil back on. This sent 200 degree Fahrenheit water that had remained in the coils out the removed opening where the Johnson joint had been. The hot water struck his lower body, resulting in burns that required hospitalization.

leak, struck by, hot water, high temperature, burn, maintenance, accidental discharge

Accident: 896548 - Burned In Pit Of Hot Water, Later Dies

On August 3, 1999, Employee #1 was helping to remove 20 ft rolls from the #2 veneer dryer. Two open pits nearly full of hot water were in front of the doors used to access the rolls, and the workers were using wooden planks to cross these pits. Employee #1 fell into one of the pits and was immersed in very hot water up to his chest. He was taken to the University of Virginia Hospital, where he died on August 9, 1999.

pit, hot water, high temperature, fall, burn, work surface, work rules, walking on plank

Accident: 170616171 - Legs Burned In Fall Into Hot Water

At approximately 7:00 p.m. on January 8, 1999, Employee #1, of Avenal State Prison, was walking next to an open 18 in. deep excavation that contained hot water when he slipped on some gravel and fell into the excavation. He suffered second- and third-degree burns to both legs and was taken by ambulance to a hospital with a burn unit.

slip, fall, excavation, walking surface, hot water, burn, leg, high temperature

Accident: 126065168 - Burned By Hot Water Release

At approximately 8:30 p.m. on November 19, 1998, Employee #1, a maintenance supervisor, was dismantling a high-temperature fault on the CIP system in pasteurizing line #1. He removed the cover without using an air blow valve to check the system. The temperature and pressure of the water increased and the hot water overflowed, striking Employee #1. He suffered second-degree burns on his arms, chest, and neck, and was taken to the USC burn unit. He was subsequently transferred to the Irvine Medical Center , where he was hospitalized for six days and then treated as an outpatient.

hot water, burn, neck, chest, maintenance, dismantling, high pressure, high temperature, pressure vessel