Lessons Learned

Reports on incidents that involve injury, exposure (real or potential), or significant damage property. Lessons Learned detail what happened and how similar incidents can be avoided in the future.

Glass Reactor Over-pressurization Causes Serious Injury to Grad Student Researcher

October 31, 2011
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

A recent lab accident caused serious injury to a UCB graduate student due to an over-pressurization that caused a glass reactor to fail. Glass was sprayed at the researcher who received cuts to his lip, chin, chest, and serious cuts to his hands. 911 was called and the researcher was taken by ambulance to the hospital. The cuts to the hand were serious enough to require stitches and surgery on the palm.

The chemical research involved a toxic/flammable gas that was liquefied and used with a pyrophoric reagent. The reaction was done inside a fume hood, so no one else...

Forklift Rollover

December 31, 2006
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

A veteran forklift operator with 20 years of experience started his day just as he had often done, then soon realized just how fast things can change. Due to an oversized load, the operator was transporting a dumpster bin on the forks of his forklift while he was traveling in reverse. While in reverse, he hit a curb, causing the forklift to roll over onto its side.

The stunned operator was transported by ambulance to the hospital emergency room, where he was treated for a fractured leg.

The operator understood the importance of wearing a seat belt and holding-...

Paper Cutter Guards

November 30, 2000
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety

Don't lose your thumb! Paper cutters such as the one here are not safe or legal. Cal/OSHA has cited campus departments for allowing unguarded paper cutters in the workplace in prior years.

a hand on a paper cutter with no finger guard

Lessons Learned

Please be sure all paper cutters in your department have a guard like the one seen here.

Improper Hazardous Material Disposal

September 30, 2002
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

A can of epoxy hardener was included in a salvage cart (see photo) and spilled at some point in the process of moving the salvage cart. An employee came in contact with the spilled material and was instructed to immediately wash with soap and water. EH&S then cleaned up the spill (see photos).

Lessons Learned

Please remind your staff of proper disposal methods for hazardous materials.

Bolt and Brace Your Shop Equipment

October 31, 2002
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

Someone was using the vice pictured below to hold an item in the process of a normal workday. In the process of performing a task, the vice toppled off the surface onto the person's foot causing a serious injury. The person was not wearing steel-toed boots.

Lessons Learned

Always wear your steel-toed boots when working around heavy machinery and shop equipment. All shop equipment that is designed to be braced to a work surface or floor must be braced. Do not use equipment that could fall or otherwise cause injury if it is not braced according to...

Laser Safety in Research Laboratories

July 31, 2003
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety

In April 2003, the Non-Ionizing Radiation Safety Committee (NIRSC) informed the laser research community that a serious laser eye injury had occurred on the UC Berkeley campus. The campus Laboratory Safety Officer (LSO) performed an investigation of the incident. The following information and lessons learned are based on the LSO’s investigation of the incident.

What Happened?

The incident involved a short pulse, Class 4, invisible (1064 nm), Nd:YAG laser in a multi-user laser laboratory. During alignment of the laser's Nd:YAG beam, a graduate student was struck in the...

Needlestick from Regular Trash

July 31, 2005
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

An employee in Campus Recycling & Refuse Services was stuck by a needle while emptying trash bags from a dumpster behind Wellman Hall. The incident happened early in the morning, and the employee sought immediate off-site medical care. A physician dispensed antiretrovirals for a possible Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) exposure, and the employee was very concerned that he might have been infected with a life-threatening disease.

The employee’s supervisor had saved the trash bag, and employees from the Office of Environment, Health & Safety (EH...

Fire Hazard with Immersion Water Heaters

September 30, 2005
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

It is believed that a Cole Parmer Polystat 12002 immersion heater in a University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC) microbiology laboratory did not shut off as the water level in the plastic bath dropped, allowing the temperature to rise to the point that the bath material ignited. The fire caused extensive damage to the building and shut down research for several months.

What was the cause?

Immersion water heaters/circulators used in plastic tubs (baths) have been associated with laboratory fires at several universities in recent years. When...

Researcher Smells Toxic Fluorine Gas When Changing Out Gas Cylinder

April 30, 2007
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

Two researchers were changing out a gas cylinder containing a low concentration of fluorine used in an excimer laser. After reconnecting the regulator, researchers opened the cylinder valve, heard a hissing sound, and smelled a pungent odor. They quickly turned off the cylinder valve and reported the incident to their department safety coordinator (DSC). Fluorine is a very toxic and reactive gas, but fortunately, the concentration was dilute, less than 0.1% fluorine. The DSC contacted EH&S and was advised that researchers involved should be medically evaluated because of...

Missing Guard on Incubator Fan Injures Post Doc

July 31, 2007
Office of Environment, Health, and Safety
What Happened?

A postdoctoral researcher was reaching into a New Brunswick Scientific Model G-25R Shaker Table Incubator to clean up a spill when her right hand got caught in the spinning exhaust fan blade. She lacerated her middle finger and lost part of the fingernail. She was treated in a local hospital emergency room.

New Brunswick Scientific Model G-25R Shaker Table Incubator...