Lake Compounce Theme Park employees exposed to chemical, fire, other hazards: OSHA

Employer name:  Lake Compounce Family Theme Park, 822 Lake Ave., Bristol, Conn., sister company of Palace Entertainment Holdings LLC, Newport Beach, California

Citations issued:  On Jan. 15, 2016, the Hartford Area Office of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration cited the Lake Compounce Family Theme Park for 18 serious violations of workplace safety standards.

Investigation findings:  The company exposed employees spraying coatings on park equipment and working with caustic chemicals in the park’s paint room to chemical, burn and respirator hazards. These hazards included failing to:

• Monitor workers’ exposure to hexavalent chromium and methylene chloride, both hazardous chemicals
• Train employees about hazardous chemicals
• Complete a hazard assessment for protective equipment needed by workers
• Provide required eye- and hand-washing facilities for employees working with chemicals
• Fit-test and determine employees’ ability to wear respirators and provide them with respirator training
• Ground electrical equipment properly
• Keep spark-producing tools out of a flammable spray booth
• Dispose of flammable waste properly
• Prevent flammable spraying when a ventilation system is inactive

Proposed penalties:  $70,200

Quote:  “These conditions exposed Lake Compounce Family Theme Park employees to serious burn, fire, chemical burn, electric shock and eye, face and hand injuries. The employer must act promptly to effectively eliminate these hazards before they injure its employees,” said Warren Simpson, OSHA’s area director in Hartford.

Next:  The company has 15 business days from receipt of its citation and proposed penalty to comply, request an informal conference with OSHA’s area director, or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Information:  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 Hartford office at 860-240-3152.

Under the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970, employers are responsible for providing safe and healthful workplaces for their employees. OSHA’s role is to ensure these conditions for America’s working men and women by setting and enforcing standards, and providing training, education and assistance. For more information, visit http://www.osha.gov.