After crews have been fighting the fire for over an hour, the chemical company president approached the fire chief and said, “All of our secret formulas are in the vault in the center of the plant. They must be saved! I will give $100,000 to the engine company that brings them out safely!”

The crews try, but no one can get through.

Then another fire truck, filled with a volunteer fire company of men over 65, comes roaring down the road and drives straight into the middle of the inferno.

The other men watch unbelieving as the old timers hop off of their rig and heroically extinguish the fire, saving the secret formulas.

The company president walks over to reward the volunteers.

“What do you guys plan to do with the money?” the president asks the group.

The firetruck driver looks him right in the eye and answers, “Well, the first thing we’re going to do is fix the brakes on that truck.”

Take a look at his 2-minute bio video below and learn his favorite thing about TapRooT® and his favorite place to travel.

5-Day Advanced Root Cause Analysis Team Leader Training
Nairobi, Kenya June 18-22
Johannesburg, South Africa July 23-27
Seattle, Washington July 23-27

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May 22, 2012

Washington, DC May 22, 2012 — The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) today deployed a four-person investigation team to El Dorado, Arkansas to determine the cause of an explosion and fire that severely burned and killed three workers.

The accident occurred yesterday, May 21, 2012, mid-afternoon on an oil tank site operated by Long Brothers Oil Company on land the company leased near El Dorado, in the southernmost part of the state.  Preliminary information gathered by the CSB indicates workers were conducting hot work – defined as any burning, cutting, welding or other operation that is capable of initiating fires or explosions – on one of the tanks.  The CSB team is expected to begin its investigation on site tomorrow morning.

CSB Chairman Rafael Moure-Eraso said, “This unfortunate tragedy in Arkansas involving the deaths of three workers is the kind of hot work accident that occurs much too frequently.  The CSB has investigated too many of these accidents which can be prevented by carefully monitoring for flammable vapor before and during hot work.  We have released a safety bulletin and safety video on the hazards of welding or cutting around piping and tanks that have not been tested or monitored to see if they contain flammable hydrocarbons.”
         
The bulletin, released in February 2010, is entitled, “Seven Key Lessons to Prevent Worker Deaths During Hot Work In and Around Tanks: Effective Hazard Assessment and Use of Combustible Gas Monitoring Will Save Lives.”

The video, “Hot Work: Hidden Hazards,” is available at www.CSB.gov or at www.YouTube.com/uscsb. It was released along with the final report on the DuPont Buffalo, New York facility explosion and fire that occurred November 9, 2010, killing a contract worker and injuring another.  The CSB determined the explosion was caused by sparks in a welding operation taking place atop a storage tank that contained flammable vinyl chloride. While the atmosphere above the tank was tested for flammable vapor, the CSB said a root cause of the accident was the failure to monitor the interior of the tank. 

For more information, contact CSB Communications Manager Hillary Cohen, cell 202-441-2980 or Sandy Gilmour, cell 202-251.5496.  NOTE: Ms. Cohen is deploying with the team and will be on site in El Dorado.

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Next week we’ll hear from Pat Fortune from Suncor.

Sanjay Gandhi has 16 years of experience in corporate health, safety and environmental consulting, auditing and training. He has been a Certified TapRooT® Instructor since 2004. Sanjay has served as Chairman of the Kenya Occupational Safety and Health Association and the Kenya Petroleum Sector Environment Commitee. He has a BS in Civil/Structural/Environmental Engineering.