Description of Incident:During a routine security inspection, a security officer detected fumes coming from a gaylord containing scrap.
The security officer immediately reported the incident to the warehouse employees and took immediate emergency response actions eliminating the potential fire risk.
Root cause:
During the separation of the materials in the production areas, pouches of desiccant (calcium oxide) were separated and destroyed using a knife to prevent its reuse. This process liberated the desiccant (calcium oxide) which was then placed within the general production waste stream. This waste stream is stored on the warehouse patio outside the building. Rainwater made contact with the desiccant and caused a exothermic chemical reaction. The oxide calcium was disposed by mistake to the scrap area.
Immediate action taken:
- A near miss investigation was done to determine the root causes.
- A internal safety communication alert was done to scrap and warehouse areas.
- Internal personnel had reviewed that waste containers were free of risks.
Corrective Action Plan:
-Perform an assessment to storage conditions in the production areas/warehouse for calcium oxide and other potential chemicals that could lead to similar issues.
- Update training to include chemical classes including water reactive chemicals for users and fire brigade.