Colorado employers are required to incorporate safety measures prescribed by law in order to protect workers from harm. If a company fails to provide at least the minimum safety equipment and training, workers can easily suffer a variety of injuries that require medical treatment and range from minor to fatal. Of course, even if a company does everything right, the potential for an accident still exists, but the likelihood is presumed to be reduced.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration recently cited an out-of-state company for several violations that put workers in jeopardy of being injured or killed. The investigation was prompted by the death of a worker. Another employee working with him was injured but survived.
The two were working near a reactor at MFG Chemical, Inc. in Tennessee, when it became overpressurized. It began leaking a hazardous chemical vapor. Without an adequate warning system, the employees inhaled the vapors, which burned the respiratory system of the worker who died. He was taken to a hospital in the area where medical personnel attempted to save his life, but their efforts were in vain. He ultimately died because of the injuries he suffered.
The injured worker’s medical treatment was most likely covered by workers’ compensation benefits, along with any lost wages he may have incurred during his recovery. The same would be true for the deceased worker during the time he was hospitalized before his death. Upon his death, his family may be able to obtain death benefits similar to those available to Colorado families, which are designed to compensate them for the loss of his income and to help with the cost of his burial.
Source: newschannel9.com, “OSHA Cites Dalton-Based MFG in 2014 Worker Death”, Jan. 6, 2015
