Alert 05 – 25 Dropped Accumulator Bottle Results in a Fatality
WHAT HAPPENED:
A Rig Manager was fatally injured after an accumulator bottle exploded. The Rig Manager was in the process of picking up freight from a third party distributor. The freight consisted of two nitrogen bottles and two 10 gallon accumulator bottles. The bottles were stored in a trailer which required forklift assistance. It is believed that one of the accumulator bottles came off the pallet as the forklift driver backed away from the trailer. The Rig Manager was positioned at the driver’s side of the crew cab approximately 25 feet (7.5 meters) from the trailer. The bottle struck the edge of the concrete pad and exploded, fatally injuring the Rig Manager.