Wilmington company cited after worker hospitalized for heat-related illness during the construction of new residences

Employer name: Enterprise Masonry Corp., 3010 Bellevue Ave., Wilmington, Delaware. The inspection site was The Flats, 4th and Union Street in Wilmington.

Citations issued: On September 23, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued the company one general duty clause citation for exposing employees to heat stress conditions, and one other-than-serious citation.

Investigation findings: OSHA determined that on July 28, 2015, an Enterprise Masonry Corp. employee working as a mason tender was hospitalized after being exposed to excessive heat. The worker became ill while manually transferring bricks in a peak heat index of 91.2 degrees Fahrenheit.

The company did not inform OSHA about the hospitalization until August 5, 2015, and received the other-than-serious citation for the delayed reporting.

Proposed penalties: $5,900

Quote: "Excessive heat exposure is a serious issue for outdoor workers, particularly on humid days. It is the employer's responsibility to ensure that controls are in place to prevent illness," said Erin G. Patterson, OSHA's area director in Wilmington.

View the citations: http://www.osha.gov/ooc/citations/EnterpriseMasonryCorporation_1084334.pdf

The firm's workers' compensation insurer is Barrett Business Services Inc., headquartered in Vancouver, Washington.

OSHA has a free app for mobile devices that enables workers and supervisors to monitor the heat index at their work sites. Additionally, a web page provides information and resources on heat illness — including how to prevent it and what to do in an emergency — for workers and employers.

To ask questions; obtain compliance assistance; file a complaint; or report amputations, eye loss, workplace hospitalizations, fatalities or situations posing imminent danger to workers, the public should call OSHA's toll-free hotline at 800-321-OSHA (6742) or the agency's Wilmington Area Office at 302-573-6518.