Serious lab accident at UCLA in 2007 was not reported

[IndianaGreen]

Serious lab accident at UCLA in 2007 was not reported

A student was injured in an incident similar to one in 2008 that killed a research assistant.
By Kim Christensen

March 13, 2010

A year before a UCLA staff research assistant was fatally burned in a lab fire, a graduate student was seriously injured in a similar accident that university officials failed to report to state regulators, records released Friday show.

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health this week fined UCLA $23,900 for the earlier incident, which occurred in November 2007 -- 13 months before Sheharbano "Sheri" Sangji suffered burns that took her life and prompted a campuswide review of lab safety. Cal/OSHA last year fined the university $31,000 in Sangji's death.

In addition, despite sweeping safety measures announced in July, Cal/OSHA last month issued $67,700 in fines for alleged violations that have occurred since Sangji died, records show. UCLA officials said Friday that they had not yet received Cal/OSHA's citations for the November 2007 incident.

They disputed the agency's February findings on the more recent violations, the most serious of which was a "repeat serious" citation for inadequate safety training. Others were related to safety gear, the storage of chemicals and inspections, the records show.

"We intend to vigorously defend against this new round of citations because Cal/OSHA, we believe, got it wrong," Vice Chancellor Kevin Reed said.

He said the university has made across-the-board safety improvements since Sangji's death, including doubling the number of lab inspections last year, enhancing training and issuing protective equipment such as lab coats.

The lack of protective coats was a factor both in the fatal fire in 2008 and the one that occurred in 2007, Cal/OSHA found.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-ucla13-2010mar13,0,5178321.story

[midnight]

1. K&R

[etherealtruth]

2. Sadly, this happens on campuses around the country ....

... and it doesn't seem to be reported.

I recall working an internship at a mid-western university ... I spent six months cleaning labs , ridding them of improperly stored chemicals and testing fume hoods .... all of this because a research assistant was seriously injured. I do not believe the incident was reported to anyone (other than the local fire department that responded .... they had an absolute fit)

[KT2000]

3. have a friend who was

poisoned by chemicals in the workplace (huge aerospace co.). He was an engineer whose office was down the hall from a lab. The "scientists" used their exhaust hood/fan to store cookies so the HVAC system just shuffled their poison air around the building - or rather into my friend's office. He suffered permanent disability -- brain damage.
Most people do not take safety precautions seriously enough with serious consequences.