Last week, the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) announced that it was imposing penalties of more than $550,000 against a Pennsylvania brass foundry.  OSHA issued a citation and the accompanying financial penalties against Kief Industries Inc, which does business as Excelsior Brass Works in Blandon, PA.

The penalties were imposed because OSHA found that the brass foundry knowingly exposed workers to lead and violated federal workplace health and safety standards.  According to Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA, “The employer deliberately refused to protect workers from overexposure to lead and other workplace hazards.”

Kief Industries was given 15 business days to respond to OSHA’s penalties.

Lead exposure can cause serious injuries such as brain damage and kidney disease and it may be fatal.  There is no word if any of the Kief Industries employees have suffered these problems.

If you’ve been hurt by lead exposure at work then you may be entitled to damages. Contact a Pennsylvania workers comp lawyer for more information.

PNC Field in Moosic, PA is home to one of the New York Yankee’s minor league affiliates.  It was also the scene of a serious Pennsylvania workplace accident last week.  On Friday night August 27 two employees of a pyrotechnics company were injured during the firework display that followed the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees game.

The names and conditions of the injured workers have not yet been released.  The state police fire marshal is investigating the cause of this accident.

On Tuesday afternoon, August 24, 2010 a welder was seriously injured at Campbell’s Transportation Co. in Dunlevy, Pennsylvania.  Firefighters were called to the accident scene on Wharf Street at approximately 12:45 p.m. 

The accident appears to have occurred when a propone tank exploded at the job site.   Washington County officials report that the injured Pennsylvania worker, who has not yet been identified, was flown to a Allegheny General Hospital in Pittsburgh for medical treatment.

On Tuesday morning August 17, 2010 a construction worker fell approximately 30 feet at the Doylestown Hospital Cancer Center construction site.  The worker, who has not yet been identified, was working for Anthony Biddle Contractors Inc. of Ambler.  It is reported that he fell 25 feet onto an area where other workers were pouring concrete and then an additional 5 feet onto dirt.  The Doylestown Fire Department helped with the man’s rescue.

The injured construction worker was airlifted to Temple University Hospital for treatment because Doylestown Hospital is not a certified neurological trauma center and Temple University could evaluate any potential head injuries or internal injuries.