Seafood company was fined after officials found the place was unsafe.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration decided that the seafood company where an ammonia leak killed a man in March will be fined. The health officials also claimed to find 20 serious violations against the company and ordered them to pay 173 168 dollars in penalties. If they will not decide to contest the decision, the company has to pay the penalties in 15 days.
It all started when Brian Caron, the facilities manager from Stavis Seafoods warehouse in Boston, died after a tank began to leak back in March. There were a lot of inspection from that moment to September and OSHA found many conditions that did not meet standards. According to then, there were blocked emergency exits, ammonia exposure and it is an unsafe place for people to work.
It seems that ammonia pipes were not marked as they should have been and there was not a proper light in the machine room. Moreover, the seafood company was not provided with a ventilation system that was able to prevent an explosion of ammonia vapors.
This is not the first time when OSHA finds violations against this company. Stavis Seafoods had 16 serious violations in 2009 when they had to pay 47 250 dollars. Richard Stavis, the CEO of the company, promised to work with officials and solve any safety problem. According to him, they “cooperated fully with OSHA’s investigation and have taken extensive steps to ensure both employee and public safety, including permanently closing the impacted facility, hiring a third-party safety and compliance consultant”.
There is one thing that the seafood company will not be able to solve: the death of Brian Caron. He left behind a wife and two children. Those who worked with him described him as a guy who did whatever he was asked and helped the others as much as he could. His loss can’t be replaced, but there have to be some changes because other employees could be in danger too.
Even though the company’s officials did not say if they will contest the decision or not, they seem to agree that they are having some issues. There are a lot of people who do not work in safe places and their lives are in danger every moment. Employers have to make sure that their workers are safe and provide them with all the equipment they need.
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