The United States Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration has

cited Commercial Warehousing Inc. for thirteen safety and health violations, comprised of one

willful and twelve serious violations. They come in response to inspections of a facility in Winter

Haven, FL in January of 2015. This inspection was initiated as part of the agency’s National

Emphasis Program for Chemical Plants. The citations are for failures surrounding insulation

removal, failure to test ammonia refrigeration system piping and pressure valves, not completing

action items on the process safety hazard analysis, and failures in training for both permanent

and temporary workers around emergency evacuation plans and alarm systems. These violations

carry proposed penalties of $116,100.

“Exposure to high levels of ammonia in the air can be irritating to the skin, eyes, throat and

lungs. Lung damage and death may occur after exposure to very high concentrations of

ammonia,” said Les Grove, OSHA’s area director in Tampa. “Commercial Warehousing has

known for several years that testing of the refrigeration piping and pressure vessels was not

being done as specified in company maintenance policy but management chose to downplay the

seriousness of the hazard due to cost, and in the process, risked the lives and health of its

workers.”

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party audits, please contact us. If you have anything to add about this inspection or about the

importance of properly updated occupational safety and health policies and procedures, please

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