The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA") has cited Healy Tibbitts and Truston Technologies for safety violations that resulted in the deaths of two workers at a Pearl Harbor naval maintenance facility in December of 2014. The workers had been upgrading moorings on a barge. This work was subcontracted to Healy Tibbitts Builders Inc. by Truston Technologies Inc. for the Navy. While working to upgrade the moorings, the capture plate separated from the base plate of the 7-ton buoy, which caused the wire rope sling over the buoy to break, freeing it to fall and strike the workers. In addition to the two fatalities, two other workers suffered injuries during the incident.
After completing its investigation, OSHA concluded that the injuries were preventable and issued citations for the following violations:
- Failing to protect employees from impalement hazards.
- Neglecting to follow written Navy procedures.
- Exceeding the rated capacity of a wire rope sling to suspend a load.
- Subjecting a wire rope sling to a shock load.
- Failing to provide safe access to the top of a concrete sinker.
The agency is proposing $46,000 in penalties for the violations.