VENTURA : Firm Appeals Fines in Worker’s Death

A Ventura company where a worker died from chemical burns is appealing state-imposed health and safety violations and penalties of $240,000 brought against it after the death.

Applied Silicone Corp. filed an appeal Aug. 26 to six citations issued by the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, said Rick Rice, public information officer for the state Department of Industrial Relations.

The citations allege that the company could have prevented the fatal chemical burns suffered by maintenance worker Patrick Walsh by requiring him to wear protective clothing and by training him in how to handle hazardous materials, Rice said.

Walsh, 43, of Oxnard, died four days after chemicals he was mixing at the plant July 21 bubbled over, spewing corrosive matter into his eyes and over his body.

The $240,000 fine imposed in connection with the citations are believed to be the largest ever issued in a single investigation by Cal/OSHA, officials said. The penalties cannot be collected until the appeal has been heard, probably in the next several months, Rice said.

Officials at Applied Silicone Corp. could not be reached for comment on the appeal.