Following an investigation into a fatal Oakwood Village foundry explosion, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration announced that they found the company at fault.
On the afternoon of Feb. 20, there was a massive explosion and fire at the I. Schumann & Co. metal facility that killed a 46-year-old maintenance worker and left 13 other workers injured, according to company and Oakwood Fire officials. The explosion was so intense it bent steal pieces from the facility.
Schumann & Co recycle material into metal alloys, ingots, and pellets.
According to OSHA's investigation, the company failed to protect its workers from the hazards of steam explosions.
"What happened was a massive amount of water got into the furnace, and then it somehow got under mixed in with molten metal trap and created a massive explosion," said Howie Eberts, Area Director, OSHA's Cleveland Office.
According to the investigation, the company did not make sure the required lockout/tag-out procedures were followed during the inspection. Investigators with OSHA also said they learned that the explosion happened when employees were inspecting a water leak in a furnace and did not have evacuation orders in place.
"When they found out there was a massive amount of water leaking into the furnace, it should have been shut down and controlled and locked out so that nothing could move in the system until they safely addressed the situation," said Eberts. “This terrible tragedy could have been avoided if the employer followed well-known machine safety standards that are meant to prevent this type of explosion. Sadly, a worker lost his life, and 15 others were hurt in an incident that was entirely preventable. It’s exactly why employers need to follow required safety procedures and train their employees.”
Oakwood Fire was the agency in charge that day. Over 20 surrounding agencies responded to help, and about 100 firefighters were on site battling the flames. Oakwood Fire Captain Brian DiRocco said it hasn't responded to a fire of this magnitude in the department's entire history.
"It was a very large-scale incident," said DiRocco. "We had over 20 neighboring fire departments assist us with fighting the fire as well as treating the multiple victims. We did learn that the systems that we have in place between us and our mutual aid agencies work."
OSHA has cited the company for six serious violations and has proposed a fine of $62,500. The company has 15 business days to respond to the citations.
The company has released the following statement about the investigation:
"Since the time of the accident on February 20 at the I. Schumann facility in Bedford, we have been cooperating with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) in its investigation of the incident. We recently received a notice of a pending citation and penalty from OSHA for six violations resulting from the accident. Proposed fines for four of the violations are contemplated. We dispute the citations. Safety is a top priority at Schumann so we intend to further discuss this matter with OSHA representatives in the coming days during an informal conference as allowed by OSHA regulations. Following that conference, we will determine appropriate next steps. We have also worked closely with the Ohio EPA on cleanup activities and successfully engaged all cleanup activities in compliance with their regulations."
Schumann is meeting with OSHA in a couple of days to further discuss the violations.
"We'll discuss the facts and see if there's any room for a settlement agreement at that time," said Eberts. "Our intention is to ensure that if they rebuild this plant, that they do it the right way and that they implement effective procedures to prevent this from happening in the future."
DiRocco said even six months later, the community is still hurting from the loss of 46-year-old Steven Mullins and the injuries of 13 others.
"Our thoughts continue to be with Mr. Mullin's family, and the people of men who were injured and the, and those that are still out of a job because of it," said DiRocco.
The foundry has remained closed since the explosion.
According to federal inspection data, OSHA fined I. Schumann & Co. in 2019 and again in 2022. In 2019, investigators said an employee suffered third-degree burns to his chest and back after spilling molten metal onto his clothing, which was not fire-resistant or fire retardant.
