WASHINGTON, D.C. — The blast that killed 12 workers at a Georgia sugar refinery last month could have been prevented if widely recognized safeguards had been required by federal regulations, the head of the U.S. Chemical Safety Board said Wednesday.
"These are preventable events," CSB director William Wright told the House Education and Labor Committee. He called for tough rules aimed at preventing the buildup of combustible dust and its exposure to sparks.
"A comprehensive dust standard will save lives," Wright said.
The CSB completed a study two years ago of 281 dust fires and explosions that caused 119 deaths and more than 718 injuries at U.S. businesses. It sent recommendations for new regulations to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Committee Chairman George Miller (D-Calif.) and Rep. John Barrow (D-Ga.) introduced legislation last week that would require OHSA to issue new regulations for combustible industrial dusts.
The legislation followed by one month the Feb. 7 explosion that killed a dozen workers and critically injured 11 others at the Imperial Sugar Co. in Port Wentworth, near Savannah. Barrow represents the congressional district where the explosion took place.
"We owe it to the victims of last month's tragedy --- and to all the other victims before that --- to do what we can to prevent this sort of thing from ever happening again," Barrow testified. "What's needed is the will to act, and if [OSHA] won't do it, we need to get going ourselves."
There are an estimated 80,000 factories and other facilities where potentially combustible dusts can be created from sugar, sulfur, coal, wood, plastics, flour or other commodities.
OSHA has enforced rules governing the handling of such dusts for more than 40 years, the agency's assistant secretary, Edwin Foulke, testified. He said the agency applies "tough standards" meant to keep facilities clean and well ventilated, to train workers in hazardous conditions and emergency plans, and to protect against the accumulation of combustible dust in places where it could ignite.
OSHA critics, however, said the agency's regulations don't go far enough and that many OSHA standards are conveyed as suggestions rather than requirements.
"We have good standards that aren't mandatory and inadequate standards that are mandatory," said Barrow. Further, he said, "there aren't enough inspectors or cops on the beat."
Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) also testified before the committee, urging caution in putting together additional regulations.
"We want to act quickly on this because you want to prevent this from happening elsewhere," said Kingston.
He stopped short of endorsing Barrow's bill, however, saying it takes a "one-size-fits-all approach" to a complicated industrial challenge.
