Synerfac, Inc.: OSHA inspections and violations

Incident on Jul 17, 2018: Employee incurs asphyxiation from nitrogen gas exposure

At 2:00 p.m. on July 17, 2017, Employee #1, a maintenance mechanic, was working in Building A, at the Black Powder Line 3. The employee opened the upper access hatch on the vessel that contained the Cake Mill Air Heat Exchanger, to replace an old air filter that was located on top of the heat exchanger. During normal operations, nitrogen gas from a near-by cylindrical shape metal tank, flows through the heat exchanger. The employer used nitrogen as an inert gas to remove oxygen from the process equipment to decrease the chance of a fire or explosion. Employee #1 was working alone and later, a coworker discovered him face down with his face, chest, shoulders, arms, and hands inside the heat exchanger. The coworker saw him through the opening of the upper hatch of the vessel and the employee was unconscious and unresponsive. His coworkers pulled him out of the heat exchanger, and the paramedics transported him to a nearby medical center. He remained in the hospital for treatment of nitrogen asphyxiation.