BAKERSFIELD, CA - The Cal/OSHA report on what went wrong on the disastrous PG&E plant implosion does not mean the site on Coffee Road and Rosedale Highway will be cleaned up anytime soon. It also can't aid in any future lawsuits against the companies involved.
PG&E said it does not have a new contractor or a timeline for cleanup at the site because it still needs approval from the California Public Utilities Commission to move forward.
Six months after the detonation, Cal/OSHA slapped the contractor and the subcontractor with four serious violations and one willful violation, stating safety problems started long before the companies came to work that day.
"First of all, their injury, illness and prevention plan that every employer in California must have, didn't properly identify certain hazards that existed at the job site," said Cal/OSHA spokesman Greg Siggins.
Cal/OSHA indicated the subcontractor Alpha Explosives and third-party subcontractor Demtech used too much explosive on the towers, creating a bigger blast area than they prepared for, which sent shrapnel flying across the street and into a crowd.
Jerry Wood almost lost his leg when shrapnel hit him in the Lowes parking Lot. His attorney said he just underwent bone graft surgery in San Francisco.
"He's had about 26 or 27 surgeries on his leg since last August," said Wood's attorney, Dennis Thelen. "Keeping our fingers crossed that he will have function in his leg, and we're also hopeful this the last major surgery he's going to require."
Despite Alpha Explosives and Demtech violating safety precautions and Demtech knowingly operated without a permit, Thelen said he can't use the findings in court.
"OSHA violations, typically, are not admissible into evidence," said Thelen.
"By California law, the standard of proof isn't going to be a negligent standard. It's the ultra hazardous or strict liability standard because the parties involved were engaged in what the law calls 'ultra hazardous activity."
Cal/OSHA did not find fault with property owner PG&E or the primary contractor Cleveland Wrecking Company.
"It was determined that neither PG&E nor Cleveland Wrecking Company, there was not evidence they were responsible for evaluating the use of the explosives," said Siggins. "They relied on the expertise of these subcontractors to do that."
Alpha Explosives was fined $14,400 and Demtech was fined $14,000. They did not receive the maximum fine amounts.
"$25,000 is the maximum for each serious violation, and for a willful violation the maximum is $75,000," said Siggins.
"They're based on the severity, the extent, and the likelihood of the violation and the adjustments to proposed penalties are made based on the size, the good faith, and history of the employers."
PG&E said it does not have a new contractor or a timeline for cleanup at the site because it still needs approval from the California Public Utilities Commission to move forward.
Six months after the detonation, Cal/OSHA slapped the contractor and the subcontractor with four serious violations and one willful violation, stating safety problems started long before the companies came to work that day.
"First of all, their injury, illness and prevention plan that every employer in California must have, didn't properly identify certain hazards that existed at the job site," said Cal/OSHA spokesman Greg Siggins.
Cal/OSHA indicated the subcontractor Alpha Explosives and third-party subcontractor Demtech used too much explosive on the towers, creating a bigger blast area than they prepared for, which sent shrapnel flying across the street and into a crowd.
Jerry Wood almost lost his leg when shrapnel hit him in the Lowes parking Lot. His attorney said he just underwent bone graft surgery in San Francisco.
"He's had about 26 or 27 surgeries on his leg since last August," said Wood's attorney, Dennis Thelen. "Keeping our fingers crossed that he will have function in his leg, and we're also hopeful this the last major surgery he's going to require."
Despite Alpha Explosives and Demtech violating safety precautions and Demtech knowingly operated without a permit, Thelen said he can't use the findings in court.
"OSHA violations, typically, are not admissible into evidence," said Thelen.
"By California law, the standard of proof isn't going to be a negligent standard. It's the ultra hazardous or strict liability standard because the parties involved were engaged in what the law calls 'ultra hazardous activity."
Cal/OSHA did not find fault with property owner PG&E or the primary contractor Cleveland Wrecking Company.
"It was determined that neither PG&E nor Cleveland Wrecking Company, there was not evidence they were responsible for evaluating the use of the explosives," said Siggins. "They relied on the expertise of these subcontractors to do that."
Alpha Explosives was fined $14,400 and Demtech was fined $14,000. They did not receive the maximum fine amounts.
"$25,000 is the maximum for each serious violation, and for a willful violation the maximum is $75,000," said Siggins.
"They're based on the severity, the extent, and the likelihood of the violation and the adjustments to proposed penalties are made based on the size, the good faith, and history of the employers."