Be Careful with Products

Toronto District School Board fined $150,000 for health and safety violation

    TORONTO, Jan. 27 /CNW/ - The Toronto District School Board, Canada's
largest school board with 560 schools under its jurisdiction, was fined
$150,000 today for a violation of the Occupational Health and Safety Act that
resulted in the death of an employee at a school.
    On June 24, 2002, a part-time caretaker on an evening shift complained to
a co-worker of being unable to breathe. The caretaker's condition deteriorated
and the caretaker died later that evening in hospital. According to a police
report, the fire captain at the scene advised police that the caretaker might
have mixed bleach with a toilet bowl cleaner. One of the police officers at
the scene noted a very strong odour like a swimming pool chemical.
    The fire captain seized two cleaners - a sanitizer/deodorizer identical
in composition to household bleach that contained sodium hypochlorite and a
liquid toilet bowl cleaner containing hydrochlorite. When mixed together, the
two cleaners would have created a dangerous, corrosive, chlorine gas. A
Ministry of Labour investigation found the caretaker had not received
instruction on these products, as required by the Regulations for Workplace
Hazardous Materials Information System (WHMIS). The incident occurred at
Alexander Stirling Public School, a public elementary school located on
Fawcett Trail in Scarborough.
    The Toronto District School Board pleaded guilty, as an employer, to
failing to ensure, as required by Section 7(1) of the WHMIS Regulations, that
the caretaker was instructed:

    -  on the contents, purpose and significance of the information on the
       labels for the two cleaning products;
    -  on the contents of the material safety data sheets and their purpose
       and significance;
    -  on procedures for the safe use and handling of these products; and
    -  on procedures in case of an emergency involving these products.

    This was contrary to Section 25(1)(c) of the act.
    The fine was imposed by Justice Robert Bigelow of the Ontario Court of
Justice at Old City Hall in Toronto. In addition, the court imposed a 25-per-
cent victim fine surcharge, as required by the Provincial Offences Act. The
surcharge is credited to a special provincial government fund to assist
victims of crime.

Where is our own Inspector Lee?

He is probably out looking for floods when he should be consulting with the Toronto School Board District for Health & Safety.

Maybe there was no instructions on the Bleach container stating that it should not be mixed with toilet bowl cleaner, maybe the cleaner( employee ) was unable to read, maybe he had no sense of smell, maybe he commited suicide, maybe he was locked in the bathroom by someone and murdered.............too many maybe's and frankly I blame the government not requiring maintenance permits in order to work in this field...........Did you know hairdressers need a permit.

                         Nightrider

You know what guys, I just had to re-read that story again after Steamer said that he never heard of that story and to tell you the truth there is something wrong with it..................As it is stated...........the part time evening cleaner complained to a co-worker of being unable to breath while on the job and died later that evening ( thus several hours passed ) He should have had time to re-coup even a little after being in the fresh air and out of the building, and blood tests should have showed toxins in his blood. SECOND How come his co-worked did not fall ill or have trouble breathing, it must have been real bad if even the Police and Fire Captain smelled bleach in the air...............

                             Nightrider