Is This Another Oops with OSHA Violations?
from: Ted Noftall Ted@tednoftall.com
to: jyarborough@port-orange.org
cc: “Clark, Wayne” <wclark@port-orange.org>
date: Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 4:07 PM
to: jyarborough@port-orange.org
cc: “Clark, Wayne” <wclark@port-orange.org>
date: Thu, Mar 20, 2014 at 4:07 PM
subject: OHSA Violations ??
.
Good afternoon Jason,
.
The photos in the attached e-mail appear to display some hazardous conditions. From the ladder & employee in one photo I estimate the depth of excavation at about 10~12 feet with additional excavated material at the surface edges. At that depth the slope of the side walls should have a 1:1 ratio OR sheeting installed. From the photos it appears the side walls are vertical, especially near the worker.In sandy soil that’s a big time hazard, and thus I am wondering if several OSHA violations are displayed in these photos ??
.
.Did this manhole coring/waterline tapping project require permitting, and if so was it, and who inspected and signed off on it ??
Does Port Orange have a construction official in the Building Dept.?
Mr. Noftall,
Please see my responses to your questions below.
Jason Yarborough, ICMA-CM
Public Utilities Director
<mailto:jyarborough@port-orange.org> jyarborough@port-orange.org
From: Ted Noftall [ <mailto:Ted@TedNoftall.com> mailto:Ted@TedNoftall.com]
Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2014 4:07 PM
To: Yarborough, Jason
Cc: Clark, Wayne
Subject: OHSA Violations ??
Good afternoon Jason,
The photos in the attached e-mail appear to display some hazardous
conditions.
From the ladder & employee in one photo I estimate the depth of excavation
at about 10~12 feet with additional excavated material at the surface edges.
At that depth the slope of the side walls should have a 1:1 ratio OR
sheeting installed. From the photos it appears the side walls are
vertical, especially near the worker.
I think it is unwise to judge site conditions based on photos. The manhole
is about 8ft. deep. The private utility contractor, city employees and
onsite inspector for the City were comfortable with the safety of the site.
The individual working on coring the manhole was a private employee, not
city employee. The person tapping the water main was a city employee working
in a shallow trench.
In sandy soil that’s a big time hazard, and thus I am wondering if several
OSHA violations are displayed in these photos ?? OSHA standards apply to
the private contractor. It is the contractor’s responsibility to monitor the
safety of their employees, not the City. State and municipal employees are
exempt from OSHA rules. Again, it is unwise to make field judgments based on
a few photos.
Ted Noftall
to jyarborough, Wayne
Does Port Orange have a construction official in the Building Dept.?
Mr. Noftall,
Please see my responses to your questions below.
Jason Yarborough, ICMA-CM
Public Utilities Director
<mailto:jyarborough@port-orange.org> jyarborough@port-orange.org
From: Ted Noftall [ <mailto:Ted@TedNoftall.com> mailto:Ted@TedNoftall.com]
Sent: Thursday, March 20, 2014 4:07 PM
To: Yarborough, Jason
Cc: Clark, Wayne
Subject: OHSA Violations ??
Good afternoon Jason,
The photos in the attached e-mail appear to display some hazardous
conditions.
From the ladder & employee in one photo I estimate the depth of excavation
at about 10~12 feet with additional excavated material at the surface edges.
At that depth the slope of the side walls should have a 1:1 ratio OR
sheeting installed. From the photos it appears the side walls are
vertical, especially near the worker.
I think it is unwise to judge site conditions based on photos. The manhole
is about 8ft. deep. The private utility contractor, city employees and
onsite inspector for the City were comfortable with the safety of the site.
The individual working on coring the manhole was a private employee, not
city employee. The person tapping the water main was a city employee working
in a shallow trench.
In sandy soil that’s a big time hazard, and thus I am wondering if several
OSHA violations are displayed in these photos ?? OSHA standards apply to
the private contractor. It is the contractor’s responsibility to monitor the
safety of their employees, not the City. State and municipal employees are
exempt from OSHA rules. Again, it is unwise to make field judgments based on
a few photos.
Did this manhole coring/waterline tapping project require permitting, and
if so was it, and who inspected and signed off on it ?? Yes. It involved
Florida Department of Transportation, Port Orange Site Development Permit,
Volusia County Health Department, and Florida Department of Environmental
Protection.
if so was it, and who inspected and signed off on it ?? Yes. It involved
Florida Department of Transportation, Port Orange Site Development Permit,
Volusia County Health Department, and Florida Department of Environmental
Protection.
.
Does Port Orange have a construction official in the Building Dept.?
Building Department does not oversee infrastructure work.
Ted Noftall
Does Port Orange have a construction official in the Building Dept.?
Building Department does not oversee infrastructure work.
Ted Noftall
Ted Noftall
to jyarborough, Wayne
@ Jason, Thank you
.
If “the Building department does not oversee infrastructure work” is it
your department that does ? And if so can you advise if the relevant OSHA
regulations were followed in this instance ??
your department that does ? And if so can you advise if the relevant OSHA
regulations were followed in this instance ??
.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz
@ Wayne,
Did your department permit this work and inspect same on a daily basis
through your agent Quinton Hampton,? And if so can your office advise if
the relevant OSHA regulations were followed in this instance ??.
Ted Noftall
@ Wayne,
Did your department permit this work and inspect same on a daily basis
through your agent Quinton Hampton,? And if so can your office advise if
the relevant OSHA regulations were followed in this instance ??.
Ted Noftall
Hey Ted
Kudos on your observations and concerns for workers safety (public & private) in Port Orange.
As I am sure you are aware, sand weights between 80 & 120 lbs per cubic foot, depending on its compaction. As a result, 1 cubic yard of sand weights about (1-1/2) one and half tons. About the same weight as a car.
From the photo there appears to be several cubic yards (several tons) of sandy soil at elevations above the worker shown in the photo. There also appears to be water infiltration near the workers feet. That water could have undermined the lower section of the sidewalls in the excavation resulting in a cave-in.
We all know what a ton of anything falling on a person will do. (Ruin their day?)
The Utilities Directors comment “it is unwise to judge site conditions based on photos” may have a little merit at times. But I prefer to stick with the old proverb ” A picture is worth a thousand words”
Pat
Being exempt from OSHA is no excuse to place a City employee at risk of injury. A picture is worth a thousand words. Whom do we congratulate for deeming that trench safe? The picture looks a little scary to me.Ted could you please advise where I can find the document posted here on the website. I do not see page 4 of 9 at all and some of the pages appear to be blank and some of the text appears altered or jumbled. I would like the opportunity to see this in its original format and make my own determination based solely on the facts. It may be a problem with my browser and if so I apologize.
Thank You
@ Pat, You are darn right about a picture being worth a thousand words.
As for the admonition from the Utilities Director you can bet your sweet bippy that he would prefer citizens not judge those conditions he is responsible for based on any amount of evidence.
@ Interested, This information in contained in a Memorandum from the Public Utilities Director dated 03-18-2014 and titled “Action Report for Citywide Boil Water Event”. I do not know if it is on the City web site.
If you e-mail me I will forward it to you.
Ted Noftall
I believe that the Public Utilities Director is incorrect in stating that “City and municipal employees are exempt from OSHA rules.” That statement by a senior staff member shows contempt for basic safety standards – I wonder if that represents the overall safety culture at the City of Port Orange. Does anyone care?
That trench is clearly deeper than five feet and all safety regulations apply regardless if the workers felt that it was “comfortable.” How dare you say that.
Shame on you and shame on the City.
Did we just hear a top city official say that Port Orange has no responsibility for the safety of private sector workers in this city ? Was he kidding or just stupid ?
Gary,
I googled him and this is what I found. Stupid I’d say not. Somehow he landed a nice cushy job in Port Orange. Or are they stupid? Hmmmm. I wonder what kind of background check would not expose ones past behavior? Back room politics or stupidity? I’m sure the City can Google can’t they?
http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2011/sep/28/new-community-manager-hired-for-barefoot-bay/?print=1
I’d like to make a few comments about the safety and the water main tap. I am a former employee of the Port Orange Utilities Dept. I have 41 years of experience in all areas of utilities work. The trench setup was borderline between safe and unsafe by looking at the pictures, leaning towards unsafe. They could have used some shoring or scraping back the top of the trench. Someone should have put a stop to the work and made sure it was safe. This type of work is inherently dangerous but none the less it is incumbent upon anyone involved to take any and all steps to insure a safe work area. Many times in the past when I encountered a contractor doing something wrong or dangerous I have stepped in and had them do it correctly. You won’t win any popularity contest that way but you can live with yourself knowing you did the right thing. The city needs employees with the experience, discipline and the authority to make these calls. They are lacking in this area and those that recognize situations like this are afraid to say anything or let it go with a wink and a nod. Real leadership is desperately needed.
As far as the tap is concerned that was a cluster f—. Way too much of the main is exposed and unsupported. You can clearly see the bow in the main putting undue stress on it. It should have been backfilled and compacted before the tap was attempted. I have talked to some employees and I read the report and I find that this was doomed for failure. I will explain. This water main is one if not the most crucial water main in the distribution system and they chose to tap it on one of the busiest weeks of the year leaving many of our businesses and residents without Quality drinking water for an unacceptable amount of time. 1st bad decision. They did not have a contingency plan for a break resulting from this tap. In the past when we had good people running the show on the crew level they would go out in the field and locate the isolation valves before hand and notify the water plant in advance. They did not do this. 2nd bad decision. They should have had people located at the isolation valves with valve wrenches and radio at ready minimizing low pressure downtime. They did not. 3rd bad decision.
As mentioned previously the main was too exposed and unsupported. There was a tremendous strain on the line already pushing the limit. When they cut a hole in the line at the highest stress point it caused catastrophic failure. 4th bad decision. If this had been well thought out and properly executed this in all probability could have been avoided. The city needs the right people in the right positions to properly manage the work. I hope that they learned from this experience. Being belligerent towards our citizens, making phony excuses and wise ass remarks doesn’t cut it.
“Kudos to Council Member Burnette. Today he requested details from the City Manager for the 57 million dollars over the next 5 years dedicated for spending on our large water system. “Staff” recommends just doesn’t fly any more as stated by Council. They want more details.
Ted asked at the April 1st Council meeting for a report on the City wide boil water event. He was quickly shuffled back to his seat with an answer from the City Manager that we will have it in 60 days from an outside firm that we are going to contract services with.The letter from the Public Utility Director in this post lists 7 possible causal factors. What was the cause? It would be nice to see what “Staff” has concluded vs the outside firm that we are going to hire for an answer as to what happened. If they can’t answer a simple request do we really want those individuals spending our 57 Million dollars?
“Staff” is paid in excess of 6 figures annually yet they never seem to have an answer. Whether the problem is meters, finances, bidding procedures or simple problem solving we hire an outside consultant and there is never any accountability or responsibility.
Scott Stiltner in an unrelated email to the City Manager today expressed the importance of review and accountability practices.He hit the nail on the head.It is nice to see in the upcoming election that we have Candidates that are not afraid to publicly voice their opinions and know the right questions to ask.Hopefully some of the new Candidates will be successful and and a prosperous and transparent Port Orange will move forward.