Accident Causation

Shane Holbrook
The Gauley Bridge Disaster
The Gauley Bridge disaster, also known as, The Hawks Nest Disaster, occurred in the
1930s in West Virginia during the great depression. The goal was simple, to open a new
electrometallurgical complex, and this was going to be done by creating a tunnel which was set
to be around 32 feet in diameter. However, after discovering several silica-rich deposits, some
nearly 100% quartz, the diameter was increased to 46 feet in order to produce revenue from the
removed silica to offset the cost of tunnel construction. According to NIOSH case study about
Hawks Nest drilling, Hawks Nest Employers took almost no precautions against inhalation of
silica. No silica air sampling was performed, dust levels in the tunnel were not measure,
respirators were not made available to tunnel workers except those directly employed by Union
Carbide, and the tunnel ventilation system was inadequate and often out of service. Dry drilling
was used in order to save time, even though connections were made for wet drilling. 75% of the
tunnels workforce were uneducated and unskilled African Americans from southern states. Due
to the silica exposure estimates from as low as 400, to as many as 1,500 deaths occurred from
silicosis. Workers were also exposed to dangerous levels of carbon monoxide from the mining
equipment being used.
In the 1930s OSHA and MSHA permissible exposure limits did not exist, and America
was far behind in silica exposure knowledge. All of this could have been prevented with proper
ventilation, respirators, and the Permissible exposure limit from OSHA and MSHA, which is (10

mg/m3)/(%SiO2 + 2). Also, it was known then but not enforced, wet drilling could have helped
with dust control significantly.
Bhopal
The disaster at Bhopal, India on February 5, 1980 is quite a tragic incident which left
thousands of people and animals dead. Union Carbide was producing methyl isocyanate (MIC),
which was being used as a pesticide, when a large quantity of water entered one of the chemical
storage tanks and caused a leak through a seal, which inevitably killed thousands. This was all in
part to changes in Union Carbides procedures. As they originally had pumps, alarms, and gauges
for their system. They replaced a leaking seal, with that of a lesser ceramic seal, which in regards
to force wasnt the best idea. They decided to stop using their refrigeration system altogether,
which later turned into them stopping using the pumps as well. Due in part to the design of the
system, the alarms being routed with the pumps, they were cut off, as well as any gauges of
pressure. So there was no way to tell the amount of pressure, or anything else in the tanks let
alone temperature. Due to rust formation, water was sprayed in order to remove MIC trimmer
deposits from the line, which inevitably ended up in the tank. Because there were no alarms, this
went unnoticed and caused the fore mentioned disaster.
As far as prevention, they were visited and audited. They were commended on their
safety by unconventional means by using nitrogen to reduce exposure to the workers by
bypassing the pumps. However, it was recommended that they change some things in order to
keep everyone safe, such as updating the alarms. As far as what is being done today, there are
several OSHA standards that apply to Bhopal. Such as the leaks that went unfixed, the alarms

being disabled, and various other standards. Basically, like Hawks Nest, Bhopal simply took
economic gain over safety.

Other Incidents
T.A. Gillespie Company Shell Loading Plant Explosion
In 1918, in Sayreville, New Jersey, an explosion occurred which was believe to be
accidental, a fire was triggered and explosions continued for up to three days. The facility was
destroyed along with nearly 300 surrounding buildings.
OSHA covers many topics, as back in 1918 these did not exist, although there are
precautions that can be taken when it comes to fire and ammunitions. Now none of the articles I
was able to find gives clear detail of how the fire started, there are several things that could have
been done. If it was a forming process in which sparks could occur, it would have been simple to
have moved it. If it was accidental in terms of a worker such as smoking, then this is just
common knowledge that fire shouldnt be around this. Although again any reason could be to
blame and it is hard to diagnose without knowing the cause of the accidental fire.
Qinghe Special Steel Corporation
In Tieling, Liaoning, China on April 18, 2007, 32 people were killed and six injured when
a ladle used to transport molten steel separated from an overhead rail. When investigated, the
cause of the disaster was using a standard hoist instead of one specifically designed for
dangerous smelting work. Other contributing factors were that the factory was lacking any major
safety features and chaotic management.

In many overseas factories there are known to be unsafe workplaces, although China does
have a benchmark standard and here it was not met. Several people were prosecuted for these
deaths and injuries, as well as the company being sued. To have prevented this is simple, safety
procedures for everything, and proper equipment for the job.