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U.S. Department of Labor | |
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| Occupational Safety & Health Administration | ||||||
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OSHA News Release
2003 - 12/11/2003 - OSHA Fines Londonderry Contractor $163,000 for New Hampshire Jobsite Electrocution Case |
OSHA News Release - Table of Contents |
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Region 1 03-846-BOS /BOS 2003-319 December 11, 2003 Contact: Ted Fitzgerald Phone: (617) 565-2074 OSHA Fines Londonderry Contractor $163,000 for New Hampshire Jobsite Electrocution Case CONCORD, N.H. -- The electrocution of a worker at a Rochester, N.H., power generation facility could have been prevented if his employer, Northeast Generation Services Company, of Londonderry, N.H., had shut off and locked out the power source of the equipment with which he was working, the U.S. Labor Department's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) reported today. NGS faces a total of $163,000 in fines for alleged willful and serious violations of the Occupational Safety and Health Act following the June 19 accident in which an employee died after coming in contact with an energized electrical panel while performing maintenance and testing at a power generation facility owned by Waste Management of New Hampshire. OSHA's inspection found that NGS failed to protect its employees against electrocution hazards. Specifically, it had not turned off and locked out the power source for the building in which its employees were working. NGS also failed to conduct a pre-job briefing with employees to identify electrical power sources and take protective measures. For these hazards, OSHA issued two willful citations, carrying $140,000 in proposed fines. "Basic safety precautions were ignored at this jobsite, and tragically, a person lost his life," said U.S. Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. "Nothing can bring this person back. But by setting this maximum fine allowed under the law, we want this to be a message to all companies that this Administration is fully committed to protecting workers safety and rights." OSHA defines a willful violation as one committed with an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Act and regulations. An additional $23,000 in fines was proposed for five serious citations. Those citations address NGS's failure to annually check employee's compliance with safety-related electrical work practices, failure to retrain workers when they worked with unfamiliar equipment, incomplete energy control procedures, unlabeled lockout devices and not informing Waste Management of New Hampshire about their energy control procedures. A serious violation is one in which there is a substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result, and the employer knew, or should have known, of the hazard. NGS has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and proposed penalties to either elect to comply with them, to request and participate in an informal conference with the OSHA area director, or to contest them before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission. The inspection was conducted by the OSHA's Concord, N.H., area office. The telephone number is (603) 225-1629. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is dedicated to saving lives, preventing injuries and illnesses, and protecting America's workers. Safety and health add value to business, the workplace and life. For more information, visit www.osha.gov. ###
The information in this release will be made available to sensory impaired individuals upon request. Voice phone: (617) 565-2072. TDD (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf) Message Referral Phone: 800-347-8029. |
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OSHA News Release - Table of Contents |
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