{"id":5217,"date":"2022-04-21T10:02:28","date_gmt":"2022-04-21T10:02:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/28april.org\/?p=5217"},"modified":"2022-04-21T15:03:58","modified_gmt":"2022-04-21T15:03:58","slug":"usa-april-the-month-of-workplace-disasters","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/28april.org\/?p=5217","title":{"rendered":"Global\/USA: April – The Month of Workplace Disasters"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reproduced in full with the kind permission of the author: Jordan Barab – the article appeared first on 20 April 2022\u00a0 in his excellent newsletter Confined Space<\/a><\/p>\n

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April 28 is Workers Memorial Day — a day dedicated to memorializing those killed on the job and rededicating ourselves to fighting for the living. April 28 was picked because it’s the anniversary of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.\u00a0 And coincidentally, April is an especially tragic time to remember some of the most serious workplace tragedies in American — and world —\u00a0 history.<\/p>\n

Upper Big Branch Mine Disaster, Raleigh County, WV,\u00a0 April 5, 2010:<\/strong> An explosion at the Upper Big Branch mine killed 29 miners. The\u00a0Mine Safety and Health Administration concluded\u00a0that flagrant safety violations contributed to the explosion. It issued 369 citations at that time, assessing $10.8 million in penalties<\/p>\n

Ammonium Nitrate Explosion, Texas City, TX, April 16, 1947:<\/strong> A fire on the French-registered vessel SS Grandcamp<\/em>\u00a0detonated her cargo of about 2,300 tons of\u00a0ammonium nitrate.\u00a0This started a\u00a0chain reaction\u00a0of fires and explosions in other ships and nearby\u00a0oil-storage facilities, ultimately killing at least 581 people, including all but one member of the Texas City fire department.\u00a0 \u00a0It was the deadliest industrial accident in U.S. history and one of history’s\u00a0largest non-nuclear explosions.<\/p>\n

West Fertilizer Explosion, West, TX, April 17, 2013: <\/strong>\u00a0An ammonium nitrate explosion occurred at the West Fertilizer Company<\/a> storage and distribution facility in West, Texas. Fifteen people were killed, including 12 firefighters, more than 160 were injured, and more than 150 buildings were damaged or destroyed.<\/p>\n

Deepwater Horizon Explosion, April 20, 2012:<\/strong> A fire and explosion<\/a> on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig killed 11 workers and resulted in the largest marine oil spill and environmental disaster in history.<\/p>\n

L’Ambiance Plaza Collapse, Bridgeport, CT,\u00a0 April 23, 1987:<\/strong> The L’Ambiance Plaza apartment building collapsed due to a faulty lift slab construction technique while under construction, killing 28 construction workers.<\/p>\n

Rana Plaza Factor Collapse, Bangladesh, April 24, 2013:<\/strong> The eight-story Rana Plaza factory building collapsed, killing 1134 people.\u00a0 The shops and the bank on the lower floors were immediately closed after cracks were discovered in the building the day before the collapse. But the building’s owners ignored warnings ordering garment workers to return the following day and the building collapsed during the morning rush-hour.<\/p>\n

Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant Disaster, Ukraine, USSR April 26, 1986: \u00a0<\/strong>No. 4\u00a0reactor\u00a0in the\u00a0Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant exploded during a safety test\u00a0 It was the worst nuclear disaster in history. Dozens of operators and response workers died due to massive radiation exposure and hundreds more from the nuclear fallout.<\/p>\n

Willow Island Collapse, Willow Island, WV, April 27, 1978: <\/strong>A cooling tower\u00a0under construction at the\u00a0Pleasants Power Station\u00a0at\u00a0Willow Island,\u00a0West Virginia, collapsed, killing 51 construction workers. It was the deadliest construction accident in U.S. history<\/p>\n

April: The Month of Workplace Disasters<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n