csb report says honolulu fireworks disposal explosion that killed five workers resulted from unsafe...

8/13/2019 CSB Report Says Honolulu Fireworks Disposal Explosion That Killed Five Workers Resulted From Unsafe Practices

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CSB Report says Honolulu Fireworks

Disposal Explosion that Killed Five

Workers Resulted from nsafe!ra"ti"es# $a"k of %ational &uidelines#

and $a"k of Safety !rovisions for

Federal Contra"tors

Washington, DC, January 17, 2013 In a final report set to be consieretoay, the !"#" Che$ical #afety %oar &C#%' sai an e(plosion an fire that

)ille fi*e +or)ers uring a fire+or)s isposal operation in a+aii in 2011

resulte fro$ unsafe isposal practices- insufficient safety re.uire$ents for

go*ern$ent contractor selection an o*ersight- an an absence of national

guielines, stanars, an regulations for fire+or)s isposal"

/he final report, scheule for a boar *ote at a public $eeting in

Washington, DC, toay, reco$$ens that feeral agencies e*elop a ne+

go*ern$ent+ie safety an en*iron$ental responsibility re.uire$ent for

contractors, an calls for ne+ regulations on the safe isposal of fire+or)s, a

gro+ing proble$ across the !"#

/he C#% also planne to release a ne+ safety *ieo entitle Dealy

Contract +ith an ani$ation epicting the tragic se.uence of e*ents"
http://www.csb.gov/assets/document/DEI_Final_01172013.pdfhttp://www.csb.gov/assets/document/DEI_Final_01172013.pdfhttp://www.youtube.com/profile?user=USCSBhttp://www.youtube.com/profile?user=USCSBhttp://www.csb.gov/assets/document/DEI_Final_01172013.pdfhttp://www.csb.gov/assets/document/DEI_Final_01172013.pdfhttp://www.youtube.com/profile?user=USCSBhttp://www.youtube.com/profile?user=USCSB


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/he pril 4, 2011, accient occurre as e$ployees of Donalson

5nterprises, Inc" &D5I' sought shelter fro$ rain insie a tunnelli)e $aga6ine

locate at Wai)ele #elf #torage in Waipahu, a+aii, near onolulu" /he

storage facility containe go*ern$entconfiscate illegally labele fire+or)s,

+hich the +or)ers ha been is$antling uner a subcontract to a feeral pri$e

contract" /he C#% eter$ine that changes in D5Is fire+or)s isposal process

resulte in the accu$ulation of a large .uantity of e(plosi*e co$ponents 8ust

insie the $aga6ine entrance, creating the essential ele$ents for a $ass

e(plosion" large e(plosion an fire fatally in8ure all fi*e +or)ers insie the

$aga6ine" 9ne +or)er, +ho ha been staning outsie the $aga6ine entrance

oor, escape +ith in8uries"

C#% Chairperson Dr" :afael ;oure5raso sai, 9ur in*estigation foun

that co$pany personnel ha no specific e(pertise in fire+or)s isposal, that the

co$panys proceures +ere e(tre$ely unsafe, an that there are no national

stanars or accepte goo practices for isposing of fire+or)s" While

fire+or)s pro*ie entertain$ent for $illions, the isposal of unuse fire+or)s

creates enor$ous ha6ars for +or)ers because, +e +ere surprise to fin, there

are no guielines to o the +or)"

/he in*estigation foun that a single, large, feeral contractor, the


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practice stanars to follo+, D5I i$pro*ise a isposal plan an sub$itte it to

oo process safety practice +oul ha*e calle

for a thorough ha6ar analysis as +ell as a co$prehensi*e re*ie+ of the

potential safety i$pacts of the propose change"

9n the $orning of pril 4, 2011, fi*e D5I e$ployees +ere ta)ing apart

oneinch fire+or) tubes )no+n as #)y ?esti*als uner a tent outsie the

$aga6ine" si(th +or)er +as cleaning up an organi6ing ite$s insie" !sing

*arious tools the D5I +or)ers cut the fire+or) tubes an separate out the

aerial shells an the blac) po+er" /he C#% calculate that co$bining such

large a$ounts of these e(plosi*e $aterials insie bo(es increase the e(plosion

ha6ar by $ore than @A0 ti$es"

/he C#% also foun a lac) of regulations or inustry stanars

aressing fire+or)s isposal" /he report foun that there are no feeral, state,

or local regulations or inustry stanars establishing safety re.uire$ents,

pro*iing guiance on proper +ays to ispose of fire+or)s, or aressing the

ha6ars associate +ith the isasse$bly of fire+or)s an the accu$ulation of

e(plosi*e fire+or)s co$ponents"

/he report notes that 9#s Brocess #afety ;anage$ent &B#;'stanar applies to fire+or)s $anufacturing, but not to fire+or)s isposal

+or)" a the stanar applie, D5I +oul ha*e been re.uire to conuct a

safety re*ie+ of the potential ha6ars in*ol*e +hen it change its fire+or)s

isposal process" /he in*estigation eter$ine, D5I +oul ha*e greatly

benefitte fro$ Brocess #afety ;anage$ent &B#;' principles an concepts of

inherent safety, a$ong the$, not accu$ulating large a$ounts of highly


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e(plosi*e blac) po+er an aerial shells +hile a+aiting isposal"

contributing factor, in*estigators foun, +as that ata about the highly

e(plosi*e co$pouns in the sei6e fire+or)s +as not $ae a*ailable to D5I

an +as not re.uire uner the isposal contract, an the co$panies in*ol*e

i not treat the fire+or)s as ha*ing the highest le*el of ha6ar"

%efore engaging in the isposal +or), D5I i obtain a +aste isposal

per$it fro$ the #tate of a+aii" #uch per$its are grante throughout the

country to entities see)ing to ispose of sei6e contraban fire+or)s because

they are consiere an i$$inent threat to hu$an health an the en*iron$ent"

%ut a C#% fining isclose that the feeral :esource Conser*ation an

:eco*ery ct &:C:' oes not incorporate B#;type ele$ents in its

ha6arous +aste per$itting process, +hich +oul help assure the isposal

process is conucte safely"

/he C#% foun that the ?eeral c.uisition :egulation &?:', +hichgo*erns feeral agencies ac.uisition of goos an ser*ices, oes not

specifically re.uire a feeral contracting officer to consier safety perfor$ance

$easures an .ualifications +hen eter$ining the responsibility of a

potential go*ern$ent contractor" Contracting officers +oul be re.uire to

specifically re*ie+ co$panies ability to use safe $ethos for any +or)

in*ol*ing ha6arous $aterials, incluing e(plosi*es an fire+or)s, uner the

proposal"

/he C#% foun that the ?eeral c.uisition :egulation &?:', +hich

go*erns feeral agencies ac.uisition of goos an ser*ices, oes not

specifically re.uire a feeral contracting officer to consier safety perfor$ance

$easures an .ualifications +hen eter$ining the responsibility of a

potential go*ern$ent contractor" Contracting officers +oul be re.uire to

specifically re*ie+ co$panies ability to use safe $ethos for any +or)

in*ol*ing ha6arous $aterials, incluing e(plosi*es an fire+or)s, uner the

proposal"

/he raft report sub8ect to the boars appro*al reco$$ens that the

?eeral c.uisition :egulatory Council an the /reasury Depart$ent

incorporate rigorous safetyrelate pro*isions throughout the feeral

contracting process ealing +ith the storage, hanling, an isposal ofe(plosi*e ha6arous $aterials, incluing fire+or)s"

/he raft report $a)es reco$$enations to the


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e*elop national best practices for the safe isposal of +aste fire+or)s that are

consistent +ith en*iron$ental re.uire$ents"

In aition, the report reco$$ens that the !"#" 5n*iron$ental

Brotection gency &5B' re*ise the :esource Conser*ation an :eco*ery ct

&:C:' regulations to re.uire a per$itting process +ith rigorous safetyre*ie+s to replace the use of e$ergency per$its, as is the practice no+, for the

isposal of e(plosi*e ha6arous $aterials, incluing fire+or)s" /he raft report

also urge the %ureau of lcohol, /obacco, ?irear$s an 5(plosi*es &/?',

+hich regulates fire+or)s in the !"#", to participate +ith the ?B in

e*eloping guiance on the safe isposal of fire+or)s"

/hough national statistics are not a*ailable, C#% in*estigators learne

fro$ *arious officials across the country that $any local agencies ha*e

unerta)en the tas) of isposing of sei6e fire+or)s the$sel*es because

contracting the +or) out to co$panies that ha*e the re.uisite per$its is tooti$econsu$ing an costly"

In*estigator Johnson sai, s +e state in the report, the C#% has

learne that the e(tensi*e ti$e an cost necessary for local 8urisictions to ship

the fire+or)s else+here has, unfortunately, resulte in the gro+ing

accu$ulation of illegal consu$er an isplay fire+or)s in $aga6ines in states

across the country" /his poses a serious ha6ar because of the lac) of national

stanars an guielines for safe isposal of these in*entories"

/he report cites a ealy accient that occurre on July @, 2012, in

+hich a *olunteer +as )ille +hen he an other *olunteers +ere isposing of

fire+or)s that ha not ischarge uring a fire+or)s isplay sho+ in ansing,

Eansas" 9ne of the threeinch ia$eter aerial shells thro+n into a burning pit

e8ecte forcefully an burst near the *olunteer" /he isplay operator for the city

tol the C#% that as $uch as ten percent of the fire+or)s use annually faile

to function properly an ha*e to be iscare" /he report note isposal

$ethos are inconsistent across the country, incluing those use by fire

epart$ents an local la+ enforce$ent agencies"

/he C#% report conclues, /he +ie array of isposal techni.ues

across the country- incients such as the one in ansing, Eansas- an the lac)

of e(isting regulations an stanars that pro*ie safety re.uire$ents an

guiance to those isposing of fire+or)s, all support the conclusion that a

regulatory gap e(ists in this country pertaining to fire+or)s isposal" Closing

this gap to pre*ent fatal incients re.uires a co$bine effort by /?, 5B,

?B, state an local agencies, an the fire+or)s inustry to create stanars

an guiance that clearly inicate the angers of hanling an isposing of


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fire+or)s, an iscuss ho+ to properly an effecti*ely $anage the ha6ars an

safely conuct this +or)"

/he C#% is an inepenent feeral agency responsible for in*estigatingserious che$ical accients" /he agencyFs boar $e$bers are appointe by the

presient an confir$e by the #enate" C#% in*estigations loo) into all aspects

of che$ical accients, incluing physical causes such as e.uip$ent failure as

+ell as inae.uacies in regulations, inustry stanars, an safety $anage$ent

syste$s"

/he %oar oes not issue citations or fines but oes $a)e safety

reco$$enations to plants inustry organi6ations, labor groups, an regulatory

agencies such as 9# an 5B"

csb report says honolulu fireworks disposal explosion that killed five workers resulted from unsafe...

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