Worker Fatality Alert: Laboratory Research Associate Dies of Burns from a Pyrophoric Chemical

Details

• Corporate Authors:
  California. Department of Public Health
• Description:
  Prevention Points: Train and supervise all researchers and staff on the proper procedures for using pyrophoric chemicals; Consider using other chemicals that are not spontaneously flammable in air; Track the purchase and use of pyrophoric chemicals. The California Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (CA/FACE) program tracks and investigates cases of fatal injuries at work, and makes prevention recommendations for employers and employees. CA/FACE is investigating the death of a research associate who was working in a biochemistry research laboratory at a major university. The research associate was extracting t-butyl lithium from a reagent bottle. The chemical splashed onto her clothing and ignited, causing serious burns. t-butyl lithium is one of a class of chemicals that are spontaneously flammable in air (pyrophoric). The research associate had recently graduated from a local college and was working for the year while applying to law school. She was working in the laboratory over the December holiday break when the incident occurred. The specific actions and conditions that led to this incident are still under investigation. As an immediate step to prevent future incidents, employers should ensure that safe work procedures are followed by all researchers and their staff when they are using pyrophoric chemicals. When possible, consider using chemicals that are not pyrophoric as this will decrease the risk of a serious injury if an incident occurs. Employers should also consider implementing a chemical purchasing and usage tracking system. This will help keep track of where pyrophoric chemicals are used so that compliance with training and supervision can be ensured. Description provided by NIOSH
• Subjects:
  • Hazardous Substances
  • Mortality
  • Occupational Health
  • Safety
• Keywords:
  • Injuries
  • Fatalities
  • Injury prevention
  • Safety practices
  • Chemical burns
  • Chemical hazards
  • Chemical safety
  • Laboratory safety
• Series:
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation Reports (FACE)
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Cooperative Agreement
• Genre:
  Report
• Place as Subject:
  California ; OSHA Region 9
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Pages in Document:
  1
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20059546
• Citation:
  Richmond, CA: California Department of Public Health, 2009 Apr; :1
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2009
• Performing Organization:
  Public Health Institute
• Peer Reviewed:
  False
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Worker fatality alert: laboratory research associate dies of burns from a pyrophoric chemical
• End Date:
  20260630
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/228981/cdc_228981_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 80.17 KB]
• Collection(s):
  Fatality Assessment and Control Evaluation (FACE) Program ; National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:f654ad206e5c268b5f668972083b041eacb2c4c994ac0311bee78fb39f193055951a9a2a4b25c32cdc7604bece42a1a1f8364853a5419ff32c5f6a47ebca65b0