I'm a HVAC technician and the state of Florida is aware of the effect of corrosion on condenser AC coils due to salt in the air. No excuse that the flame arrester should not be prone to corrosion also. This job was death waiting to happen.
Damn, the guy who still had the presence of mind while ON FIRE to think of an escape plan that wouldn't kill him outright was a true pimp. Good for him.
@@unusualbydefault agreed. in my head i always think 'great the person survived' but then i consider how utterly devastating it can be to a person's life when dealing with major injury and trauma... i hope the quick thinking worker has made it through the horror.
@Lazys The Dank Engineer ... Their job is to investigate and report. The reports are there to inform the public AND our elected officials. The problem is our public is too apathetic to care and our politicians are too corrupt to do anything about it. Any “power” the work of the CSB that can be brought to bare, is in our hands. They are an invaluable source of discovery and information.
Most of these accident can be linked to those who claim to be in charge. Management seldom knows anything about work being done. They only think in dollars.
Oh, they know more than you think. They just don't have an invested interest in the consequences, because 1) it's not profitable to do so, and 2) they are not the ones rolling the dice with their lives and health.
yup..I lived there for a while, everything is about the $$$, do it as cheap as possible, fast as possible and thats all the project managers worry about. So the contractors underbid jobs, cut corners to save money and cost worker and civilian lives on many, many occasions.
@@ZelosZelo Yep. It doesn't matter if it's business or government; money makes the world go round. The state has just as much reason to cheap out on safety - the less they spend on 'boring' stuff like that, the more they can spend on cool new shiny toys, or just siphon out for themselves. Politicians aren't corrupt just for the hell of it!
"Florida law does not require state or local governments to provide public employees with safety training, or to comply with OSHA safety standards." Ok so Florida is basically saying that public employees are expendable. Nice.
They made themselves expendable by not using common sense. You are responsible for all your actions when governed by the laws of physics. One sniff of that tank should have told them all they needed to know. Never assume anything...
Funny how this year (2021) EXACTLY this same accident involving the same sort of tank filled with methanol at a waste water treatment plant happened in the UK 🇬🇧. Amazing how industries don't learn from each others mistakes.
And what did Florida do in the wake of such a deadly accident? They ignored the CSB's recommendations and still offer no legal protection to it's public workers. This just goes to show you that what's good for the goose is not good for the gander.
They were using a torch above a RACING FUEL TANK. How does one ignore maintenance on something called a "flame arrestor"? They used PVC pipe. I'm at a loss for words.
It's interesting that they knew enough to install a flame arrestor, but not enough to realize that the aluminum flame arrestor was incompatible with the methanol. It's like well-intentioned people who use galvanized pipe for propane, because they're not aware that propane attacks zinc.
@superdrummergaming: A couple of years a go a huge fire started at a chemical company (ChemiePack) in Moerdijk, The Netherlands after someone had gotten the task of "defrosting" a pump used to pump over a highly flammable chemical with a gas torch. That day the torch ignited the fuel and caused a small fire that soon spreaded to storage containers containing much more of the same liquid and other liquids that (again, against safety regulations) were stored at an open space of the terrain instead of in specially assigned storage spaces with oxygen-removing fire-suppressing systems that could be activated in case of a fire. Investigation later turned out the "defrosting" process had grown to be common practice (against all safety regulations) at the company, but it was mainly the storage of the same very flammable chemical on the open space that caused the fire to get out of hand quickly. When the first employee reported the fire at the fire department she was clearly not informed well enough and only mentioned there was a fire at their company, which, according to the reaction of person on the telephone at the fire department was perceived to be a small fire. A second employee who called maybe just a minute later (when security camera footage synchronized with the calls showing the fire already getting totally out of control) was able to mention the location on the terrain of the company where the fire was at that time, but was (because of not following safety regulations) unable to tell the fire department what they stored there (and thus, if they could use water or not, which it turned out they should not have used because the chemical was lighter than water and floated on top of it, either washing away unburned or burning on top of the water). Some small waterways around the facility turned an awful kind of red in the following days after the accident, indicating some chemicals had leaked into the surface water. There are mistakes being made everywhere as soon as regulations are being ignored, unfortunately.
@@Dutch3DMaster I was there that day. Working in the steel recycling company across the road. That was the biggest campfire I've ever seen! The next day all the little canals in the industrial area were all kind of colors. Unbelievable how stupid some people can be. Chemiepack was known to don't care about safety rules.
Damn, we have a Waste Water Treatment facility in our Fire District, when I was a Firefighter I always cringed when we got a call for there. Thankfully nothin too serious the Managers and Workers do a good job of mitigating any big accidents. NFPA is basically a guideline but....you ever go to Court concerning NFPA those guidelines hold up as laws.
I don't know where you get these ideas? Methanol is like Isopropanol and Ethanol. One is used on cuts and abrasions and the other is what is in Vodka. Methanol is not highly toxic as long as you don't drink it. We used it in Aviation for several things, it's not even really that volatile compared to other flammable liquids such as MEK or Acetone. People are getting this stuff confused with Nitro Methane which is for "top fuel" dragsters.
@@peterolsen269 Incorrect. Methanol is toxic by skin exposure and vapor inhalation. The NIOSH exposure limit is about 1/5th of a teaspoon skin exposure. It also forms explosive mixtures with air at room temperature. Nitromethane is more poisonous and chemically reactive, but that doesn't make methanol safe (also nitromethane is actually harder to ignite and explosive in a narrower range of mixtures with air). It's also true that methanol flames are very difficult to see, as it burns a very pale blue and generates no smoke.
@@adrianhenle1) Methanol is a nondrinking type of alcohol (also known as wood alcohol and methyl alcohol) which is mostly used to create fuel, solvents and antifreeze. A colorless liquid, it is volatile, flammable, and unlike ethanol, poisonous for human CONSUMPTION. 2) Methanol can also degrease the skin, which may cause dermatitis. Symptoms of ACUTE methanol exposure may include headache, weakness, drowsiness, nausea, difficult breathing, drunkenness, eye irritation, blurred vision, loss of consciousness, and possibly death. Notice how I NEVER said it was SAFE. Notice how it says "Consumption" not "Contact". Notice how the warning says ACUTE. Don't misquote me and then argue with yourself. I've been in more toxic environments than you can imagine. Try being in a booth when shooting catalyzed paint and vaporized high risk solvents like Acetone. Try having high temperature, high pressure, vaporized Phosphate Ester based hydraulic fluid suddenly filling a closed work environment. I'm just saying, all this hyperbole is getting to be exhausting. The main point is know your environment and what the required measures are to safeguard yourself. Good day Adrian Chemist.
This videos are interesting and informative in how to avoid an accident at work thanks to the brave men and women that have made some mistakes that show others how not to do it and remember that safety is number one priority
Safety training,routine inspection and maintenance = lives! I hate that it takes someone to lose their life for new regulations to take place but these poor men punched the time card expecting to go home and to their families. Simple oversights are wicked and merciless!!!
Defunding The Chemical Safety Board Is A Bad Idea And Likely To Increase Chemical DisastersUnfortunately, the 2019 budget proposed by the Trump administration zeros out funding for the USCSB. Its requested fiscal-year funding, $12 million, is modest for a government agency. Likewise, the 2018 budget also proposed to defund the USCSB. This sustained effort reflects an ongoing de-emphasis on chemical safety - as a second example, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Scott Pruitt has indefinitely delayed bans on the use of three hazardous chemicals, shown to be toxic to human health. Chemical production is an essential component of modern society. This does not mean that there is not room to improve practices in manufacturing, storing, and shipping chemicals, and in ensuring the safety of those who work in or live near chemical plants. The vantage of an independent group is crucial for identifying those aspects that can and should be improved. Defunding the USCSB, which provides this indispensable independent perspective, is likely to hinder efforts to identify the causes of chemical accidents - especially in low-regulation locales. Moreover, it is also likely to worsen our ability to respond in previously unforeseen events, such as the heavy flooding of Harvey, that may be exacerbated by climate change. Finally, it is likely to cost lives in future incidents.
@@johnballs1352 web.archive.org/web/20191020213008/www.safetyandhealthmagazine.com/articles/16670-csb-harwood-grants-back-on-the-chopping-block-in-trumps-fy-2019-budget-proposal google is your friend 🙃
Which other sitting president is currently trying to remove regulatory boards at the behest of the industry? I only know of one President at the moment, but I suppose there could be more.
So the material that the flame arrestor plate above the tank is made out of readily corrodes to the chemical they were storing inside the tank... Bro what.
I had no idea that an aluminum flame arrestor was incompatible with methanol so I probably could have made that mistake. I think I would have known not to weld over it though
I lived in Florida for several years. Florida government is not very good around Ft. Lauderdale, miami, broward and beyond. Things there are done in the cheapest way possible. They put up a big front, making things seem to be on the up n up. Blasting the news about improvement and how things are so good, but behind the scenes, the companies they hire to do most of the work cut every corner possible. They do this because they underbid a job, which was the only way to get it. And cutting the corners is the only way to make any profit. A perfect example; there was a walkway over hwy 141 that collapsed before it was even finished because the contractor used a cheaper concrete, skimped out on some of the steel reinforcements that go into the concrete, and rushed the job so much there was an alignment issue getting the ends to meet up in the right place. The walkway took 10x longer then it was supposed to and It ended up costing some lives when it collapsed. ... so no, it dont surprise me 1 bit. and oversight is not on purpose, oversight caused by trying to be as cheap as possible is on purpose, and the results are a direct reaction to the people in charge trying to save a buck. IOW the workers had no choice, nobody cared about safety, just getting the job done, on time and as CHEAP as possible.
@@jordanbell4736 You don't know me, I think you should take your own advise and show more respect for others. My remark (which is not a judgement) is based on experience.
I once heard a saying from long ago: "Kill a man, hire a man. Kill a mule buy a mule". Meaning, people are cheap and expendable because there will always be those who need a job lined up ready to take that mans place. You need to spend money to buy/replace a mule, so do everything you can to protect them from injury or death. I've never forgotten that quote.
Section (3)(5) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 specifically excludes Federal OSHA's authority over employees of State and local government.
Patrick B yeah... Scary to see that they were "not aware of the need to inspect..." and hadn't since the installation 13 years earlier... horrible injuries and deaths, entirely preventable... :(
Is there no way to check for presence of fumes that does not involve open flame? It's like checking for landmines by stomping on the ground... Reminds me of the Buggs Bunny cartoon working in a WW2 shell factory as a 'tester' by hitting each shell fuse with a hammer.
What is an OSHA-Approved State Plan? The Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Act covers most private sector employers and their workers, in addition to some state and local government employers and their workers in the 50 states and certain territories and jurisdictions under federal authority. Those jurisdictions include the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam, Northern Mariana Islands, Wake Island, Johnston Island, and the Outer Continental Shelf Lands as defined in the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act. Private Sector Workers OSHA covers most private sector employers and workers in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the other United States (U.S.) jurisdictions - either directly through OSHA or through an OSHA-approved State Plan. State Plans are OSHA-approved job safety and health programs operated by individual states rather than federal OSHA. Section 18 of the OSH Act encourages states to develop and operate their own job safety and health programs and precludes state enforcement of OSHA standards unless the state has an OSHA-approved State Plan. OSHA approves and monitors all State Plans and provides as much as 50 percent of the funding for each program. State-run safety and health programs must be at least as effective (ALAE) as the federal OSHA program. OSHA provides coverage to certain workers specifically excluded from a State Plan (for example, those in some states who work in maritime industries or on military bases). To find the contact information of the OSHA or State Plan office nearest to you, call 1-800-321-OSHA or go to www.osha.gov. The following 22 states or territories have OSHA-approved State Plans that cover both private and state and local government workers: Alaska Arizona California Hawaii Indiana Iowa Kentucky Maryland Michigan Minnesota Nevada New Mexico North Carolina Oregon Puerto Rico South Carolina Tennessee Utah Vermont Virginia Washington Wyoming State and Local Government Workers Workers at state and local government agencies are not covered by OSHA, but have OSH Act protections if they work in states that have an OSHA-approved State Plan. OSHA rules also permit states and territories to develop plans that cover state and local government workers only. In these cases, private sector workers and employers remain under federal OSHA jurisdiction. Five additional states and one U.S. territory (Virgin Islands) have OSHA-approved State Plans that cover state and local government workers only: Connecticut Illinois Maine New Jersey New York Virgin Island
Scary, cannot even blame the workers for not smelling the gas. In another video in this channel, one of the cause of accident is workers only using their sense of smell in detecting gas presence, little did they know that smelling the same gas everyday make their smell desensitized to that gas odor.
Every person who ever advocates for rollback of regulations or elects someone who advocates removal of regulations needs to be strapped in and forced to watch the entire USCSB playlist clockwork-orange style.
Do you really think that requiring a certain amount of parking spots per allowable restaurant square footage despite the presence of a firelane or the need for a permit to install a sign on the outside increases safety? How about the need to aquire a permit to practice interior design?
@@paulmvn5431 You'd think "what a bunch of maroons, requiring permits to install a sign" until a 1200 pound signs over a parking lot comes crashing down on a windy day on YOUR car (or your kids), because the installer didn't bother with engineering on the supports.
don't really think using PVC pipe is a mistake here. First, it is always more important to prevent the fire. Secondly, is it certain that using steel pipe will be mitigating the consequence? The pressure is definitely high, steel pipe may transfer it to somewhere downstream where can be even more dangerous.
Man I feel bad for the crane operator, the fires directly shot at him from the tank. Any other place he could have stopped and he'd have been at least somewhat more safe and could've survived...
When budgets get tight safety is always the first program cut. How about CDM, a premier wastewater engineering firm's design? Nice work, ended in deaths. But it brought the project in on budget.
Right, it never exploded, it ignited inside the tank by not creating enough pressure to bust it open. Some hoses disconnected because the bottom tank was bending and pushing the tank up. Explosion would probably have the tank flying 300 feet in the air.
Surprised thathe fumes in the tank did not prevent combustion by displacing air containing O2. Surprised they even had a flame arrester where one would never expecthere to be flames.
When regulations aren't enforced this sort of thing is bound to happen. I can't help but think lobby groups for the companies involved are to blame, forcing the states to not enforce "costly" saftey standards and regulations.
There is just so much wrong with this incident. It's understandable why so many workers die on the job as management is so complacent with their safety.
@@Sashazur I know, that's precisely the problem. If you don't know what's inside the giant bomb with PVC pipe sticking out of the side of it, maybe ask someone if they could potentially explode if they try to weld in that particular area, which happened to be, in this case, above a giant bomb. These are details you really need to get hammered out before the welding/cutting process begins.
If I may... The "Training" people receive is Half Ass'd and Severely Inadequate for Life/Safety Purposes! Enforcement is Key in these issues and Needs to be Strictly Enforced. And this includes anything between OSHA Guidelines to Personal health risk and Safety.
Jesuskeyrist. No one is looking over the other guys shoulder to make sure all is well. No systems engineer checking things out. No one with an eye to safety first. Sad.
This is how the convo should go: Boss: "I want you to go cutting steel above these tanks." Worker: "Okay, what's in the tanks?" Boss: "Methanol." Worker: "Okay. Both tanks are drained and inerted?" Boss: "No, one is full." Worker: "..." Worker: "..." Worker: "..." Worker: "Well, they'd better get drained and inerted first." Boss: "No can do." Worker: "I have a short list of recreational anatomical impossibilities you might enjoy." Boss: "Well, if you don't like your job ..." Worker: "Money's no good to me unless I live to spend it, so I'm not taking a torch to God's own Molotov cocktail. Get those tanks drained and inerted, or at least fully air-flushed -- or else job upshove arsewise. I've got my FU money put aside, so I'm good either way." Boss: "..."
Pretty sad how mistakes or flaws can lead to death and that's when the lawyers come in to take advantage of the situation. No system is flawless and you should know that before taking a dangerous job.
The third guy was wise after their mistake! that was smart of him to have thought of running thro9ugh the roof to an area where he could descend or jump at a safer height. I thought the guy in the mobile crane could survive or escape easily upon seeing the ball of fire explode above the tank. Well the first guy had the worst instant death! But crane driver had really tasted hell fire. I wish he can bypass hell after this incident for real.
What is so upsetting about this disaster is that the people responsible , all went home and slept in their owns and never were made to pay for the lives lost to their negligence and oversight ! It's really not rocket science that alchochol of any kind will create a fire with flames ! Everyone involved in the building not the tanks to management of the facility should have been prosecuted and either served time in prison or be put on probation with a criminal record ! Murder / homicide should be punished , period ! Stop making excuses for people who don't care and out other people's lives in danger !
It is bad enough to get private companies to follow safety guidelines. Wouldn't be too hard getting City and State government to follow such guidelines some they are normally the enforcer rather being enforced.
Did theyvhave a FLAMABLE safety sign anywhere on the tanks? I think the welders cary an obligation as part of their job to know these safety risks. Its kind of like feul delivery drivers. They either knew or should have known that it was careless and wreckless to let shards of sparks rain down on a storage tank that might contain unknown liquids. Abybody see the video about the propane storage tank explosion at a gas station? When propane vapors entered the store, everyone locked themselves "inside" the store for safety. They all perished. Sad. 😥
Once again, we see how equipment for handling highly dangerous materials has been designed, operated and maintained by brain dead mickey mouse amateurs. Wouldn't a professional welder want to know what's in a tank that he's going to be showering with sparks? Is there anyone on the property who's bright enough to ask the question, "What would happen if...?" The CSB has produced hundreds of accident reports during its 20 year history. They present the results and conclusions flatly, with absolutely no sense of shock or mockery. But you've got to imagine the meetings they've attended in which highly trained investigators are falling out of their chairs at the stupidity of chemical industry workers who cause these spectacular accidents. I'd LOVE to attend just one meeting for the entertainment.
You assume that the guy operating the cutting torch is an AWS certified, trained, professional welder. Most likely he was someone with enough general knowledge to know how to run a cutting torch. Frankly, I'm befuddled about why they were chopping the roof up with a torch. Most sheet metal roofs are attached by screws. If they were just replacing the roof, it would have been trivial to dismantle it with a battery drill motor, no torch required.
It's absolutely horrible but why did one guy decide it was best to just jump out? Maybe he was on fire amd and wanted to die but not likely. The other guy was quick on his feet fortunately
OH MY GOD JC A BOMB More seriously though, if it’s okay to reply to a 3-years old comment, he either fell from the roof or jumped intentionally to escape the blaze, which sounds like an instinctive reaction to me. That’s what some people did from the WTC after all.