|
| National report highlights worker fatalities, need for stronger workplace safety measures
National Council for Occupational Safety and Health, Apr. 23, 2013
More than 4,600 workers were killed on the job in 2011 – the latest year for which we have complete data – spanning many ages, industries, and causes of death, an analysis by the National Council for Occupational Safety and Health (National COSH) has found.
The report, “Preventable Deaths: The Tragedy of Workplace Fatalities,” released today, pairs government data with heart-breaking stories about worker fatalities to portray the need for worker health and safety reforms.
The report comes just before Workers’ Memorial Day, which falls on April 28 and commemorates workers who have been injured or killed on the job. National COSH this year has expanded the commemoration to a Workers’ Memorial Week of Action, consisting of events, actions, reports, and other ceremonies across the country throughout the week of April 22-28. A list of events is available athttp://www.workersmemorialweek.org. (more) |
| As critics press for action, Chemical Safety Board investigations languish
The Center for Public Integrity, Apr. 17, 2013
Three years after Tesoro and Deepwater Horizon, both inquiries remain open – exemplars of a chemical board under attack for what critics call its sluggish investigative pace and short attention span. A former board member calls the agency “grossly mismanaged.” The number of board accident reports, case studies and safety bulletins has fallen precipitously since 2006, an analysis by the Center for Public Integrity found. Thirteen board investigations – one more than five years old – are incomplete. (more) |
| The Texas fertilizer plant explosion cannot be forgotten
The Washington Post, Apr. 23, 2013
The explosion of the West Fertilizer Company plant on April 17 in West, Tex., killed 14 people, injured more than 160 and destroyed dozens of buildings. Yet unlike its fellow tragedy in Boston, the Texas plant explosion began to vanish from cable TV less than 36 hours after it occurred. Marquee correspondents like Anderson Cooper were pulled out of West and sent back to Boston, and little airtime was spared for updates from Texas, even as many nearby residents remained unaccounted for. The networks seemed to decide covering two big stories was covering one too many, as if we journalists can’t chew gum and walk at the same time. The media’s neglect has greatly increased the danger that the explosion will quickly be forgotten, to the detriment of U.S. workers. (more) |
|
Media Matters, Ap. 23, 2013
All three cable news networks failed to highlight a West, Texas, fertilizer plant’s storage of 270 tons of ammonium nitrate — 1,350 times the amount allowed without disclosure to the federal government — in reporting on the April 17 explosion at that plant. The networks also virtually ignored the plant’s history of violating state and federal regulations.
An April 20 Reuters report noted that fertilizer plants and depots must report to the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) whenever they hold 400 pounds or more of ammonium nitrate, a potentially explosive chemical that can be used in bomb making. Reuters reported, however, that the plant that owned the company, West Fertilizer, “did not tell [DHS] about the potentially explosive fertilizer as it is required to do, leaving one of the principle regulators of ammonium nitrate … unaware of any danger there.” (more) |
| Fertilizer plant explosion echoes another Texas tragedy
Texas Observer, Apr. 23, 2013
The still-unfolding tragedy in West, Texas, is a reminder of how achingly redundant some things in the state can be. There has been a long string of industrial explosions, accidents and mishaps that not only claim lives but unleash eerily similar and unanswered questions. (more) |
| Texplainer: Who oversees Texas’ fertilizer plants?
The Texas Tribune, Apr. 23, 2013
Hey, Texplainer: Which state and federal agencies were responsible for overseeing and regulating the fertilizer plant in West that exploded last week, killing 14 and injuring at least 200?
There’s no single agency responsible for inspecting fertilizer plants and enforcing their regulations; the task falls to a wide range of state and federal agencies. Here’s a look at what the agencies do – and the role they played in monitoring the West facility. (more) |
| 3 years since the BP oil spill and we are still sick
Louisiana Environmental Action Network, Apr. 22, 2013
As Earth Day passes and we remember the events of the BP Oil Spill three years ago, we are reminded that things have not been made right here along the Gulf Coast. There are many individuals who continue to suffer severe health impacts from the BP Oil Spill.
LEAN, along with several other groups and individuals have written our concerns in a letter to the agencies charged with protecting the health and safety of the people of the United States. As victims of this disaster have yet to receive adequate assistance from BP or anyone else, we are calling on these agencies to do everything they can to address the suffering still being experienced by so many. (more) |
| Six years jail for injury reporting fraud
Safety at Work Blog, Apr. 22, 2013
“If it can’t be measured, it can’t be managed”* has been a mantra of business for decades but all measurement can be corrupted. One of the most contentious elements of occupational health and safety (OHS) is the measurement of safety performance and a recent prosecution in the United States provides an important lesson for OHS managers everywhere, even though details are scarce.
“On Apr. 11, 2013, Walter Cardin, 55, of Metairie, La., was sentenced to serve 78 months in prison followed by two years of supervised release…. after being charged by a federal grand jury with eight counts of major fraud against theTennessee Valley Authority (TVA), an agency of the United States.” (more) |
|
NYCOSH Newsline 