Resources for Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

NIAGARA FALLS: OSHA fines Memorial Medical Center

www.niagara-gazette.com

A federal labor agency has levied a fine against Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center for failing to adequately protect construction workers from asbestos exposure during a renovation project last year.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration ordered the medical facility to pay $110,000 in fines for failing to provide proper employee safeguards during a December renovation project in which workers handled materials containing asbestos.

Following up on a complaint from a hospital employee, OSHA’s investigation of the project determined that hospital workers removed material that contained asbestos from a steel ceiling beam without wearing respirators or proper protective clothing. The agency’s investigation also determined that workers on the project were not adequately informed about the hazardous nature of their work, nor did the medical facility do an adequate job of decontaminating workers’ clothing, monitoring asbestos levels on-site or disposing of materials containing asbestos. Prolonged exposure to asbestos can lead to lung diseases, including lung cancer and mesothelioma.

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