PALM BEACH POST June 22, 2007 Feds blame plant's safety shortfalls in fatal accidentSafety procedures and training that could have prevented the death of one worker and burns to two others were not in place at an Indiantown citrus plant when a boiler came apart and spewed scalding water on workers in November, according to an investigation by the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Robert S. Rogers, 53, died and two other workers were hurt in the Nov. 15 accident. Their employer, Louis Dreyfus Citrus, was fined $4,900 for each of two violations and ordered to fix the problems in an order issued last month by OSHA. But because of a communication breakdown between the company's Florida and Connecticut offices, no one responded to OSHA's May 11 order until Thursday, when a reporter began asking questions about the report. An OSHA official earlier expressed "shock" that the company had seemingly ignored the findings. "It was a screw-up that is being remedied," said Randy Freeman, a Louis Dreyfus senior vice president in its Wilton, Conn., office. "We would emphasize that we have implemented all of the report's requirements, but the paperwork response was mishandled due to two people not communicating. It's been fixed." Thursday afternoon, OSHA area director Darlene Fossum said Louis Dreyfus officials contacted her office and were sending the required forms and a check for the fine by overnight courier. "They have paid the full amount of the fine, and they are not contesting the findings," she said. The inspector who investigated the accident must review what Louis Dreyfus submits to make sure it covers all of OSHA's concerns. Janet Rogers of Okeechobee said she and her family are still grieving the loss of her husband and partner of 25 years. "You don't just forget after six months," she said. Rogers had not seen the OSHA report but said she was disappointed in the penalty assessed. "I don't see how somebody can die and it costs somebody $10,000," she said Thursday. OSHA's Fossum said the plant is required to create a "block and bleed" system that will allow workers to stop the flow of water or steam and to release it from equipment while they are working on it. The company also must set up a training program on boiler safety. She said OSHA must be satisfied the measures the company has taken will protect the safety of workers, or OSHA will ask for an on-site visit to inspect what has been done. "We'll look at that very, very closely," she said. Rick Tomlin, a Louis Dreyfus senior vice president in the Winter Garden office, said the OSHA requirements were met within 24 hours of when it received the report. He said the two workers who survived the accident have returned to work for the company at the plant on Warfield Boulevard. Company inspectors still don't know exactly what caused the boiler to fail, Tomlin said. "It was a very freakish accident that has never happened in the industry before," he said. None of the workers or their families has filed suit against Louis Dreyfus thus far, Tomlin said. |