1-800-Flowers, one of the largest online florists and gift retailer, has begun to implement contingency plans to assist in the production of both Fannie May and Harry London Chocolates, which includes shifting warehouse and distribution operations to other company facilities. They are also considering third-party logistics companies to help distribute products during the holiday season.

We will continue to monitor this story and provide updates as they become available.

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According to Jim Helmke, Director of Operations at Yuengling, “The fire itself was very dramatic and very frightening…but, this could have been far, far, far worse.”

Fire investigators believe the fire started when a worker was performing hot work too close to structural materials. Helmke said that a welder most likely started the fire when old beams in the wall were heated and then began to smolder. The smoldering could have gone unnoticed for several hours before the walls caught on fire.

A hot work incident like this one, where smoldering occurs in hidden combustibles and where fire breaks out several hours later within concealed spaces inside a wall, is very difficult to get to and to extinguish. Over 60 firefighters reported to this two-alarm fire and some had to climb five stories in order to enter the building, which was full of dense smoke and high heat conditions. Fire crews were then evacuated and firefighting tactics changed to an external attack using multiple aerial ladder trucks.

Thankfully, no one was seriously injured during this fire incident caused by hot work. But, time and time again, hot work remains a leading cause of industrial fires. It continues to be responsible for many injuries, fatalities, and significant loss of property, as evident in the loss estimate of the October Yuengling fire.

Hot work accidents are often completely preventable. For tips to help prevent hot work incidents check out our post, Think Personal Safety Before Firing Up that Torch”.  There are also many other articles and resources on the topic available on our website. The easiest way to find them is to use the search function located in the left-hand navigation. Just type in any keyword, like “hot work”, “torch”, or “welding”, click search, and you’ll be on your way to finding more resources.

In addition, qualified fire protection engineers can assist you by providing associate and contractor training, as well as guidance in the development of written hot work safety management policies and procedures. If you would like more information on how we can provide such assistance, contact us today.

By Jeff Harrington, CEO and Founder of Harrington Group, Inc.

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In June 2010, the CSB urged NFPA to revise the National Fuel Gas Code following a tragic natural gas explosion at the Kleen Energy electric plant located in Middletown, Connecticut. The explosion killed six workers and injured approximately 50 others. The incident occurred during a process called “gas blow”. During this procedure, large amounts of natural gas are forced through piping at high pressure in order to remove debris from the pipe. During the Kleen Energy incident, the gas accumulated and was eventually ignited by an unknown source.

In response to the request of the CSB, NFPA reacted quickly to develop provisional standard NFPA 56 in less than 24 weeks to not only address “gas blows”, but to also address a multitude of gas process activities, including pipe cleaning, repair, replacement, and removal procedures. The development process of provisional standard NFPA 56 was much faster than the typical code development process, which can last 104 weeks, if uncontested. If contested, the process can go as long as 141 weeks.

“This is an example of the critical role NFPA plays in providing codes and standards for use by government and other entities throughout the world,” says NFPA President James Shannon. “Our ability to bring together the right people at the right time and to facilitate a consensus process in very short order resulted in a standard that will save lives and prevent a tragedy like the one in Connecticut from happening in the future.”

Praising NFPA, CSB Chairperson Dr. Rafael Moure-Eraso said, “We heartily commend the NFPA for acting promptly and decisively in adopting the CSB recommendation in record time…NFPA moved it through the document’s revision cycle smoothly, formally publishing the NFPA 56 2014 edition last August. Our board recently voted unanimously to close this recommendation as “Exceeds recommended action” – our highest level of approval.”

To hear NFPA Vice President Chris Dubay discuss the expedited development process for NFPA 56: Standard for Fire Explosive Prevention During Cleaning and Purging of Flammable Gas Piping Systems, check out the YouTube video below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EEGgcodZZSw&feature=player_detailpage

By Jeff Harrington, CEO and Founder of Harrington Group, Inc.

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Upon arriving on scene, firefighters found that the fire was contained within the dryer. Plant maintenance staff had used fire extinguishers to control it before the fire department’s arrival, while other staff members evacuated the facility. Chief Ball stated, “Employees had already used fire extinguishers on it. We just kind of stood around and watched it. We didn’t even put any water on it. That would have just made it worse.”

According to the fire department’s reports, firefighters worked together with plant personnel within the incident command system to formulate a plan that allowed the dryer to cool-down while providing overhaul inside the dryer.

The six million dollar industrial dryer is reportedly the first one of its type in the world, at 63 feet long and 1.5 stories tall. At the time of the incident, it was in normal operation and staffed by five Donnelley personnel. The dryer sustained moderate damage from the fire that included melted hoses and wires.

At the time of the fire, there were 320 employees on site and no injuries were reported in the incident. R.R. Donnelley is a Fortune 500 company that provides print-related services and is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois. As one of the largest printers in North America, operations have included commercial printing, print fulfillment, and business communication outsourcing for over 140 years.

Many details of this incident have not been reported at this time and are unknown to us. We can, however, make some assumptions using the information given, and draw some useful conclusions. Industrial dryers that process combustible materials are susceptible to the accumulation of combustible residue on interior surfaces of the dryer and exhaust duct work. The residue can eventually ignite due to self-heating, or be ignited by other sources, such as an exposed burner flame, or from other transient sources of heat.

It appears likely that combustible residue accumulated in this dryer and found an ignition source. The key lesson to be learned from this is not a new one.  The lesson is this:

Industrial dryers that process combustible materials should be cleaned on a regular frequency appropriate to the operation to prevent unsafe accumulations of combustible residue. Failing to do this exponentially increases the risk of a serious fire. Thorough cleaning at the proper frequency coupled with effective preventive maintenance of the equipment makes it very unlikely that a serious dryer fire will ever occur.

  By Jeff Harrington, CEO and Founder of Harrington Group, Inc.

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The Blue Rhino facility houses over 50,000 20-pound propane cylinders. These cylinders are typically found on backyard grills and barbeques. The plant refurbishes the cylinders and refills them with propane. According to local authorities, the cylinders are stored on different parts of the property, so as last week’s fire spread, it continued to cause more explosions across the facility. The initial blast occurred shortly after 10:30pm, but explosions continued for roughly 2 ½ hours. Evacuations were made for a half-mile surrounding the scene and flames could be seen for several miles.

The Blue Rhino facility was built in 2004 and employs less than 50 people. According to Tavares Fire Chief Richard Keith, “They actually run a very safe operation. We’ve trained with them. Our fire department works with them.” The Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services inspected the facility approximately two weeks prior to this incident and found no violations.

Damages to the Blue Rhino facility have been estimated at $2 million in property and $1 million in content damage.

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On its official Twitter account, the Boston Fire Department said that “an inadvertent spark caused some combustibles to catch fire” when welders were working on the roof to install a new vent system. As seen in the picture above, smoke from the fire filled Boston’s North End. Despite the amount of smoke, firefighters were able to quickly bring the fire under control.

Firefighters remained on scene the following day to control hot spots. Check out the video below to see smoke creeping down the streets of Boston during this fire in the YouTube clip provided by Dan Flaherty:

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According to reports, the recycling company was issued a “notice of violation” back in March 2012 for exceeding the allowable number of tires stored on the property. Indiana Department of Environmental Management Spokesperson Barry Sneed said, “The limit is there because too many tires can be a fire hazard. It can create some real issues because of how tires burn.” The company had agreed to the order in January and according to Nationwide Owner, David Burgen, had dropped below the allowable  limit approximately two weeks before the fire.

Over 20 agents from the ATF, as well as Indianapolis fire investigators have been sifting through debris to determine a cause of the fire. While the cause is yet to be determined, investigators have recently stated that the fire suppression system in the large warehouse failed to operate during the massive blaze.

Officials are unsure of why the sprinkler system did not activate and mentioned that the facility had not been inspected by fire marshals in years. Despite this lack of inspection, it is ultimately the building owner’s responsibility to ensure fire protection systems are functioning properly. If the sprinkler system had been functioning properly, it is quite probable that the extent of loss would have been significantly minimized.

The post Investigators: Fire Sprinklers Failed to Operate in Industrial Fire appeared first on Harrington Group Inc.

The explosion occurred at the Co-Alliance fertilizer and grain facility in Union Mills, Indiana, located approximately 50 miles outside of Chicago. 67-year old victim, James Swank, had been employed at the facility for seven years. According to LaPorte County Coroner, Swank died of multiple blunt force trauma.

Shawn Lambert, Safety and Risk Manager of Co-Alliance stated that it was unclear as to where Swank was working, whether it was on top of the roof of the silo or the ground level section, when the explosion occurred. He also stated, “We pride ourselves on safety and we are very saddened by the fact that we lost somebody.” All others who were at the facility at the time of the explosion were accounted for and no other injuries were reported.

This tragic incident is a reminder of the dangers of combustible dust in many industries, including those that handle grains. According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), over 500 combustible dust explosions have occurred in grain-handling facilities in the United States over the past 35 years. These explosions have resulted in more than 180 deaths and over 675 injuries.

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Voltaix CEO, Pete Smith, said that the incident began in a 10,000-gallon storage tank and was contained to that tank. He explained that the fire occurred when 1,000 gallons of excess solvent was being placed into the storage tank. The tank, which is fully automated, is supposed to be airtight. But Smith indicated that air somehow got into the tank while the plant was using a new process to store the solvent. This caused the explosion, dislodged the lid of the tank, and resulted in a fire. Employees worked to contain the fire and cool the tank with water until fire departments arrived and extinguished the fire with foam.

The Voltaix facility, which opened in 2012, sits on over 25 acres and consists of a three-building, 40,000 square-foot campus in Portland Industrial Park. The facility employs approximately 20 people.

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While the cause of the explosion remains under investigation with the State Fire Marshal, the incident has been deemed accidental. Fire officials believe employees were cleaning equipment at the time of the explosion.

According to Postville Fire Chief Jeffery Bohr, the facility’s sprinkler system helped to contain fires caused by the explosion. Building personnel and officials also shut down natural gas valves and boilers to help keep the fire under control. In addition, according to Allamakee County emergency management coordinator, Chris Dahlstrom, the facility was specifically designed so that if something were to falter, the fire would go up through the roof.

At this time, there are no updates regarding the critically injured employee.

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