Hazard Containment and the Richmond Refinery Fire: Is Your Company Prepared for an Emergency?

It goes without saying that the combination of highly combustible chemicals and complicated maintenance upkeep makes oil refineries very dangerous work environments. If you take into consideration the high potential for leakage from piping, it is all the more clear that precautions must be made to deal with maintenance, repairing issues, and handling repercussions. While few leaks ever amount to the catastrophic proportions of Chevron’s recent refinery fire in Richmond, California on August 6th, a regulations, protocol, and procedures outlined by OSHA can prevent an emergency from escalating to something far worse. There’s a question that all industrial companies should be asking themselves in the wake of the Chevron incident:

Do our employees have the training they need to identify, handle, and prevent emergencies caused by inherent hazards in the workplace?

Hazardous chemicals and materials are a reality in many work environments. It is imperative that your employees are prepared to act in any environment and have the ability to communicate any hazard issues with their supervisors directly. Managers and supervisors need to clearly explain and note any inherent hazards an employee may encounter, and provide proper and accessible training to illustrate what is expected of employees in such emergencies.

Training employees doesn’t have to be challenging or tedious. The OpenSesame marketplace offers a wide selection of courses to teach your employees everything from OSHA’s HAZWOPER specifications to responding to an emergency. Here are some of your best options for getting started: