NIXON, Texas – The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited Vann Energy Services LLC in Nixon with 13 safety and health violations – including two willful and three repeat – for exposing workers to flash fires and other hazards. OSHA’s Austin Area Office opened an inspection after two workers were injured by a fire that occurred in an oil and gas field tank. Proposed penalties total $246,000.
Inspectors found that the employer had failed to ensure that the air inside the tank was tested for flammable or toxic materials before providing employees with electrical equipment that is capable of causing a potentially flammable environment to ignite.
The repeat violations include failing to provide eye and face protection, communicate chemical hazard information to workers and protect flexible electric cords from damage. A repeat violation exists when an employer previously has been cited for the same or a similar violation of a standard, regulation, rule or order at any other facility in federal enforcement states within the last five years. OSHA cited the company for similar violations in August 2011.
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