Janitor using propane buffer killed by carbon monoxide

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  Oregon Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (Program) (OR-FACE) ; Oregon Health & Science University. Oregon Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology (CROET)
• Description:
  On November 13, 2004, a 50-year-old male janitor was found dead at a job site where he was cleaning floors with a propane buffer. The janitor had completed all but one room of the 1,500-2,000 sq. ft office building. He was found collapsed and unresponsive about 6 ft from the buffer, which was still running in the idle position. No external doors or windows had been opened to allow ventilation. The janitor was a temporary worker, hired through an agency, and had worked with his current employer for 2½ weeks. The medical examiner discovered a 62% carbon-monoxide saturation level in the victim's blood. Cause of Death: Asphyxiation by inhalation of carbon monoxide and propane exhaust. Recommendations: 1. Propane-powered equipment used indoors should be replaced with electric-powered equipment ; 2. Propane-powered equipment should only be used indoors when adequate ventilation and carbon-monoxide detectors and alarms are available ; 3. Equipment should be properly maintained in safe working condition ; 4. Employers should ensure a safe work environment for their employees, including temporary employees.
• Subjects:
  • Accident Prevention
  • Accidents
  • Accidents, Occupational
  • Maintenance
  • Occupational Health
  • Safety
  • Safety Management
  • Vehicle Emissions
  • Ventilation
  • Workplace
• Keywords:
  • OSHA Region 10
  • Accident-analysis
  • Accident-prevention
  • Accidents
  • Injuries
  • Injury-prevention
  • Traumatic-injuries
  • Work-operations
  • Work-analysis
  • Work-areas
  More +
• FACE - NIOSH and State:
  FACE ; Machine (All) ; Machine - General ; Prevention through Design (PtD) ; Temporary Worker
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Subseries:
  State
• DOI:
  https://doi.org/10.26616/NIOSHSFACE04OR037
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Field Study
• Place as Subject:
  Oregon ; OSHA Region 10
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1-5
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20031807
• NTIS Accession Number:
  PB2007-107905
• Citation:
  Morgantown, WV: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Public Health Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, FACE 04OR037, 2006 Feb ; :1-5
• CAS Registry Number:
  • Carbon monoxide (CAS RN 630-08-0)
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2006
• Performing Organization:
  Oregon Department of Human Services
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• NAICS and SIC Codes:
  56 - Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services - (NAICS)
• Start Date:
  2002/09/01
• End Date:
  2006/08/31
• Resource Number:
  FACE-04OR037
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/166276/cdc_166276_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 88.53 KB]
• Collection(s):
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:51e7664d66f4eb8908c09c9373287714dcb93b4c332ce987c60280e8953c4c9752fc06f42f6219221af0d58ba4ae07d684f6b06a020ad5b90c4841961bea4470