Jackson company faces $74,000 in fines for safety violations

While U.S. Department of Labor inspectors were investigating how a 54-year-old employee at a Jackson diaper recycling facility lost four fingers using a machine, they found fire hazards that could have caused an explosion.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspectors found "extensive combustible dust and potential sources of ignition" at Wahlco D.W. Tool, according to a news release issued Thursday by the Department of Labor.

A message seeking comment from Wahlco's safety director was not returned Thursday.

On Aug. 17, OSHA cited the company for one repeated and 12 serious safety and health violations, including a lack of machine safety guards, according to the release.

Wahlco had been cited in 2013 for not having machine safety guards, which OSHA said could have prevented the March 19 amputation. Proposed penalties total $74,480.

"One worker suffered a life-altering injury, and excessive combustible dust at Wahlco made for a disaster waiting to happen," Bill McDonald, OSHA's area director in St. Louis, said in the release. "For the second time in two years, the company intentionally disregarded OSHA standards and requirement for machine safety -- an unacceptable practice."

Any combustible material can burn rapidly when in a finely divided form, according to OSHA literature, and even materials that do not burn in larger pieces can be explosive in dust form under certain conditions.

Inspectors also found the company failed to train employees about machine hazards and combustible dust; did not turn off machinery before servicing; lacked housekeeping to control dust; operated an inadequate respiratory control program; and did not provide protective equipment for employees working with energized electrical parts.

Many of the violations are among OSHA's most frequently cited and can result in death or permanent disability, the release stated.

OSHA spokesman Scott Allen said Wahlco has 15 business days from receipt of its citations and penalties to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA's area director or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Allen said fines are considered "proposed" because there's a due process through which businesses may have a strong argument as to why they feel certain violations should be considered less serious offenses. As of Thursday afternoon, Allen said there was no record of Wahlco submitting a request for a conference.

He added OSHA isn't about collecting fines, but "trying to abate issues as quickly as possible to make sure workers are safe as quickly as possible."

klamb@semissourian.com

(573) 388-3639

Pertinent address:

5830 Route V, Jackson, Mo.