IDOL, IL OSHA Release Educational Report Following Investigation of Public Works Worker Death

SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Department of Labor's (IDOL) Division of Occupational Safety and Health (IL OSHA) has released an incident report following an inspection and investigation of the drowning of a public works employee.

The Deming Incident Report serves as a learning resource for municipal water departments.

In February 2023, a 20-year-old maintenance worker drowned in a water main vault that flooded during the attempted repair of a leaking valve.

IL OSHA determined there were multiple contributing factors that led to the drowning, including:

• Lack of compliance with several confined space standards.
• Lack of oversight and auditing by management.
• Lack of rescue capability at the worksite.

“This incident highlights the importance of compliance with Illinois Occupational Safety and Health Act standards, proper risk assessment, and a rapid and effective rescue plan for confined space operations,” said IL OSHA Chief Erik Kambarian. “Additionally, employers must foster a workplace culture where workers can speak up if something doesn't seem right.”

IL OSHA made several specific recommendations to reduce the risk of a similar occurrence, including:

• Implementing a compliant, specific, written confined space program.
• Requiring management oversight and auditing of operations.
• Ensure a rapid and effective rescue capability.

The affected municipality was cited with seven violations of the Illinois Occupational Safety and Health Act and sent a hazard alert letter about confined space rescue.

As part of the settlement agreement between IL OSHA and the municipality, the municipality was required to produce a companion training video on confined space safety for water departments.

IL OSHA's intent with these incident reports is to identify lessons and then share that information with public bodies in Illinois so that lessons identified become lessons learned.

Occupational safety and health standards enforcement for employers in Illinois is a shared responsibility between the U.S. Department of Labor (federal OSHA) and the Illinois Department of Labor (IL OSHA). Federal OSHA, an Administration under the U.S. Department of Labor, covers all private sector workplaces while IL OSHA, a Division of the Illinois Department of Labor, covers all state and local government workplaces.

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