OSHA Regional News Release – Region 4

Worker electrocuted because his employer did not ensure safety procedures were followed
A preventable incident, OSHA report reveals

REDDICK, Fla. – Electrician’s apprentice was testing and repairing electrical transformers at a substation in Reddick when he was electrocuted by more than 10,000 volts. He was a 36-year-old husband and was a person who lived to make others happy.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration inspected the utility company after learning of workers injury. OSHA found the company responsible for one willful and five serious safety violations. Proposed penalties total $90,000.

“[The Company] is aware of the fatal hazards that [the worker] and other workers are exposed to, but failed to implement control measures its safety team developed to protect employees,” said the director of OSHA’s Jacksonville Area Office. “This tragedy could have been prevented had management not delayed in making the workplace safe.”

To read more from this News Release from April 17th, 2015, click here.