OSHA fines Georgia sawmill $267,300 after worker dies

The death of a 24-year-old worker at a Georgia sawmill last year could have been prevented if the company had followed safety procedures and federal regulations, the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration said, fining the plant $267,300.

“We have learned that Thompson Hardwoods purchased new equipment to increase production but did not mitigate potential hazards before allowing workers to service and maintain the new equipment,” OSHA acting area director Audrey Windham said in a statement.

The worker, whose name was not released, was clearing a blockage in a wood chipper when the machine was turned on. An OSHA investigation found that workers at the Hazelhurst plant had not been trained in lockout/tagout procedures, which can prevent dangerous equipment from being turned on at the wrong time.

“Workers operating machinery can be seriously or fatally injured if all energy sources are not removed,” Wyndham said.

OSHA has charged Thompson Hardwoods, owned by Delaware-based BeasleyJohnson Holdings, with willful, repeated and serious safety violations. The company has two weeks to appeal the findings.

Sawmills have long been considered one of the most dangerous construction sites. According to local news, a similar fatal incident occurred in February at a Pollard Lumber Co. sawmill in Appling, Georgia. A 63-year-old worker was killed in a wood chipper at the sawmill.

In Alabama, OSHA fined a factory in Phenix City nearly $2.5 million in February after a 67-year-old worker died there, the second fatality in three years.

subjects
Workers Compensation Georgia