1 worker who survived tanker blast was atop railcar wearing harness (video interview of surviver)

[Omaha Steve]

X post in GD & Labor



MEGAN FARMER/THE WORLD-HERALD
A memorial was placed near the explosion site at an Omaha rail yard near First and Hickory Streets. The blast killed two workers Tuesday.


POSTED: THURSDAY, APRIL 16, 2015 1:00 AM
By Maggie O’Brien and Alia Conley / World-Herald staff writers

One worker survived the explosion at a southeast Omaha rail yard that killed two men Tuesday afternoon.

Dallas Foulk, 40, and Adrian LaPour, 44, died while cleaning a tanker railcar near First and Hickory Streets. Foulk was exiting the car and was blown off the railcar by the explosion, and LaPour was trapped inside when the ladder blew out.

A third worker was atop the railcar and wearing a harness, which prevented him from suffering any serious injuries when he too was blown off, said Scott Allen, a spokesman for the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

That worker was identified Thursday as Joe Coschka.

FULL story at link. Video: http://studio.omaha.com/?ndn.trackingGroup=91341&ndn.siteSection=omahalanding&ndn.videoId=28906619&freewheel=91341&sitesection=omahalanding&vid=28906619

Related Story Investigators continue to seek cause of railcar explosion in southeast Omaha that killed 2: http://www.omaha.com/news/metro/investigators-continue-to-seek-cause-of-railcar-explosion-in-southeast/article_c3fd7da4-e2d5-11e4-bb34-5fab2484ea2c.html

[yallerdawg]

1. Rest in peace, Dallas. Rest in peace, Adrian.

Nebraska Railcar Cleaning Services paid nearly $7,000 to resolve the violation allegations, according to inspection documents.

“These incidents are preventable and often predictable, and that is why it is imperative the employer ensure that all OSHA standards and regulations are followed,” said Allen, the agency spokesman.

Joe survived, wearing a safety harness!

That memorial says all I need to know about "the dignity of work" capitalism shoves down our throats from birth to earth.

[TBF]

2. Not just railcars ... protective gear is often an issue

and you will find contractors and sub-contractors not always using what they should. Came across this in a case in which a family lost their 21-yr old in North Dakota (repair on oil rig) a few years ago. They pay off the (often poor) families to avoid lawsuits and continue ...