Three men were injured after a transformer exploded while they were replacing an above ground power vault.   One of the injured is an employee of Anaheim Public Utilities and the other two were under contract with the City of Anaheim. All three were hospitalized.  Police report that their clothing caught fire in the explosion. Oct. 26, 2011 [...]

The employee was working as a subcontractor at a construction site when the incident occurred.    The explosion was caused when a main electrical supply cable to the site was cut during its removal.  A 415 volt three-phase temporary supply had been provided to the site. The Court heard that the worker approached his supervisor to explain that the electrical [...]

A 25 year-old apprentice lineman badly burned over 50% of his body in an electrical incident in October 2010 is continuing his rehabilitation.  The lineman was operating a scissor lift at an electrical substation when electricity arced and touched the corner of the lift. The electricity traveled to the ground and back, resulting in severe burns. Without electrical [...]

OSHA has issued 5 citations and levied $10,875 in fines on  a Graniteville, SC company following  an investigation of an arc flash incident that resulted in second degree burns to three employees. The accident occurred when an employee was installing new wire conduit and breakers into a 480 V breaker box. The panel did not [...]

On October 10, 2010 three electrical contractor employees working at the Martin Marietta Mine in Snyder, OK were arc flashed installing ground fault indicator lights on a live 800 AMP breaker.  From the MSHA report, all three workers were transported to the hospital and one died two days later.  Most of the arc flash fatalities are [...]

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Building firm fined after electrical blast
By Catriona Webster

Published: 03/09/2010

An Aberdeen building firm was fined £9,000 yesterday after an employee was badly burned in an electrical explosion.

Sheriff James Tierney ordered the owners of Graeme W. Cheyne (Builders) Ltd to pay an additional £4,000 in compensation to joiner George Forbes at a hearing at Aberdeen Sheriff Court.

The company, of Sugarhouse Lane, previously admitted health and safety failures that led to Mr Forbes, 62, handling a redundant electricity power supply device known as a fuse cut-out that was still live.

Mr Forbes was working on a construction site at 238-242 Holburn Street on November 11, 2008, when he tried to remove the fuse cut-out to put up some plasterboard.

The cut-out was connected to a 415-volt cable and Mr Forbes was badly burned when he touched it.

He was taken to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, where he stayed for nine days and was treated for burns to his hand and face.

A Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigation revealed that the cable was twisted, causing a short-circuit that created enough energy to melt the cable and create a small explosion.

Read more: http://www.pressandjournal.co.uk/Article.aspx/1900622?UserKey=#ixzz10ZRkPX1K”

The California Department of Industrial Relations has levied a $176,000 fine on Pacific Gas & Electric following a review of a Cal-OSHA report that alleged lax enforcement of safety rules to protect employees following the electrocution death of a PG&E utility worker.  The worker was upgrading a transformer in a vault that contained 12,000-volt power lines.  [...]

“In addition to proposing a $191,000 penalty for the Kansas City, Kan., facility, the Labor Department’s complaint asks the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission to order the Postal Service to correct electrical violations at all of its facilities nationwide.

The Postal Service responded that it has been working since January to correct many of the electrical safety issues.

“The plan provides for electrical risk assessments, training, personal protective equipment, enhanced safe electrical work practices and insulated tools,” the Postal Service said in a prepared statement.

The response already has included 123,000 hours of training for more than 20,000 maintenance employees and continuing distribution of more than $2 million in protective gear such as safety glasses, face shields and flame-resistant gloves, lab coats and coveralls.

The Labor Department said the complaint “marks the first time OSHA has sought enterprise-wide relief as a remedy.”

DOE is one of the toughest on electrical safety.  Bechtel has a good rep too.  Shows improvements can happen anywhere and that programs can slip when training slips. Click here to read the story about an arc flash in the Knoxville News Sentinel.

Wearing the right PPE is critical but other provisions to prevent arc flashes and lower incident energies in incidents are part of CSA Z462 and NFPA 70E.  These provisions prevent many of the incidents in the workplace. Click here to read the story of the arc flash fine in Canada at OH&S Insider.