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Workplace injuries at California explosives plant results in fine

On Behalf of | Jul 13, 2017 | Work Injuries

One would expect an explosive plant to have the utmost concern and care for safety procedures, given the significant risk to employees should things go wrong. The California Division of Safety and Health agrees. That’s why Pacific Scientific, a California explosives plant, was cited and fined over $293,000 for an accident that resulted in serious injuries for one employee. Cal/OSHA concluded that the workplace injuries were inexcusable considering the circumstances that led to the explosion that seriously injured one worker.

A female employee was loading a tray with 79 tubes containing explosives known as SCID. She had mounted the tubes onto aluminum support brackets on an aluminum metal tray. While attempting to tape the tubes to the tray, almost all of the tubes exploded, seriously harming the worker.

As a result of the accident, Cal/OSHA cited the plant with nine safety and health violations. Three of those violations were in the willful/serious category, and the rest were in serious and general categories. The willful violations indicate that the company knew that the procedures being used were likely to cause an unsafe environment, but that the company did not act to change the situation.

Most companies have safety policies in place in order to protect workers on the job. Workplace injuries can be avoided when proper protocols are in place, safety gear is available and safety policies are enforced. In California, workers injured on the job have the right to use the assistance of an attorney when making workers’ comp claims if they are injured on the job. A lawyer can help maximize the benefits received by the worker.

Source: benitolink.com, “Pacific Scientific cited, fined over $293K for repeated safety violations following employee injury”, John Chadwell, June 27, 2017

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