A federal probe into the deaths of two workers at an Oregon, Ohio, refinery’s crude unit found that BP Products North America violated U.S. Department of Labor’s process safety procedures for highly-hazardous materials and failed to adequately train the workers.
According to a release by the Labor Department (DOL), the workers were to correct rising liquid levels in a fuel gas mix drum, which caused a flammable vapor cloud to form and ignite, resulting in an explosion in September.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration review commission (OSHA) identified the training deficiencies and cited BP for 10 serious violations and one less-than-serious violation of process safety management procedures, the DOL reported.
OSHA has proposed $156,250 in penalties.
“Federal safety standards require BP Products North America to develop company-wide process safety and response procedures that address worst-case scenarios," said OSHA area director Todd Jensen of the Toledo, Ohio office, in the release.
OSHA cited BP for failing to develop and implement safe work practices, train operators to identify the presence of hazardous materials, document design for pressure safety valves, address hazards of overfilling process vessels and evaluate for engineering or administrative controls, among other issues.
BP Products has 15 days to comply with the rulings and request a conference with OSHA or contest the findings before the independent OSHA review commission.
“This tragedy is a reminder of why employers must consistently re-evaluate those procedures for accuracy and ensure workers are properly trained to respond in dangerous situations," Jensen said in the release.
