Share: Every provision of these regulations issued by the Work Safety Administration is the result of painful lessons learned from real-life incidents!

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On September 29, 2014, the State Administration of Work Safety issued Order No. 69 – the “Five Provisions for Safe Operations in Confined Spaces”. Just five very short sentences constitute a departmental regulation, which has left some colleagues in the safety sector puzzled. In fact, every provision of this departmental regulation is derived from past accidents; if companies fail to comply with them properly, they are likely to face serious consequences. If you don’t believe it, please take a look at the details below. The “Five Provisions for Safe Work in Confined Spaces” and analyses of related accident cases: A strict work approval system must be implemented, and it is strictly prohibited to enter confined spaces for work without authorization. 【Typical accident】At 21:20 on January 14, 2015, the deputy director of the refining workshop at Yunnan Honghe Jinkē Sugar Industry Co., Ltd. assigned 5 workers to go to the fifth floor to clean syrup tanks No. 7 and No. 8. At 21:46, a worker entered Tank No. 7 containing syrup; he fainted while bending down to carry out his task. The people on site noticed this and called for help using walkie-talkies, and 11 workers in the vicinity rushed to assist him. As a result, 4 people died, 2 suffered moderate poisoning, and 6 suffered mild poisoning. 【Lesson Analysis】When carrying out work in confined spaces, the enterprise failed to implement an approval system for such operations, did not conduct risk assessments in advance, and failed to take targeted preventive measures against those risks, which led to the occurrence of an accident; attempts at rescue carried out recklessly resulted in an increase in casualties. 【Key Points】Enterprises must implement an operation approval system for work in confined spaces, and conduct safety checks on each condition related to such work. Before carrying out work in confined spaces, enterprises shall conduct risk identification, analyze the existing hazardous factors, propose measures to eliminate or control these hazards, develop a plan for working in confined spaces, and have it approved by the enterprise’s management. Work in confined spaces must strictly adhere to the principle of \"ventilate first, test then, and work afterward\". Working in confined spaces is a high-risk activity; companies must, in accordance with relevant regulatory requirements, equip themselves with the necessary testing, ventilation, and protective equipment, and install safety warning signs in such areas to ensure operational safety. It is necessary to follow the order of \"ventilation first, then testing, and finally work\"; working without proper ventilation or testing is strictly prohibited. 【Typical Accident】At around 14:40 on October 19, 2015, employees at the methanol plant of Supor Group in Zhenjiang City, Jiangsu Province, suffered carbon monoxide poisoning while carrying out dust removal work inside a vacuum black water cooling and separation tank in the gas processing section, resulting in the death of 3 workers. 【Lesson Analysis】The faulty equipment was not properly isolated, resulting in the inhalation of toxic gases such as carbon monoxide, which led to the death of 3 people from poisoning. 【Key Points】Carbon monoxide is a toxic gas; exposure to high concentrations of it for a short period of time can be fatal. It is also explosive when mixed with air, with an explosion limit of 12.5%–74.2%. Before entering confined spaces in chemical processing equipment for work, these spaces must be completely and effectively isolated and thoroughly cleaned and purged. It is necessary to conduct quantitative tests of the oxygen level within the confined space, as well as quantitative analyses of the levels of toxic and harmful gases and flammable gases; work can only proceed once all these conditions are met. Personal protective equipment against poisoning and suffocation must be provided, safety warning signs must be installed, and work must never be carried out without such protective measures. 【Typical accident】At around 16:50 on October 14, 2015, a nitrogen asphyxiation accident occurred at Lantian United Gas Co., Ltd. in Xishui County, Huanggang City, Hubei Province, resulting in 3 deaths. 【Lesson Analysis】The device design is unreasonable; the excess nitrogen exhaust pipe is connected to a pit, posing a high safety risk. Due to inadequate management of confined spaces, a maintenance worker suffocated while opening the pit cover to fetch water. Improper on-site emergency handling and reckless attempts to provide rescue led to the expansion of the accident. 【Key Points】Inhaling high concentrations of nitrogen can cause oxygen deprivation and asphyxiation, leading to rapid loss of consciousness and death due to the cessation of breathing and heartbeat. Chemical (hazardous chemicals) enterprises are strictly prohibited from carrying out operations such as hot work, entry into confined spaces, work at heights, lifting operations, temporary power use, excavation, inspection and maintenance, and plug removal without prior approval. Workers must receive safety training, and it is strictly prohibited to allow those who have not passed the training to work. 【Typical accident】On March 18, 2015, Weilin Rubber Company in Danzhou City, Hainan Province, organized a cleaning operation for the rubber wastewater tank. One employee collapsed suddenly while working in the tank; two other employees along with the factory manager who arrived upon hearing the news went into the tank to rescue him, which ultimately resulted in the death of all three from poisoning. 【Lesson Analysis】The company had a mistaken understanding of confined spaces; it believed that open pools did not constitute confined spaces and could not cause poisoning. The company failed to provide its employees with safety training regarding work in confined spaces; as a result, the employees lacked awareness of the safety risks associated with such work, were unaware of the dangers of poisoning and suffocation in confined spaces, and entered these spaces without taking any measures such as ventilation, testing, or protection. 【Key Points】A confined space refers to a space that is enclosed or partially enclosed and has poor natural ventilation; such spaces are prone to the accumulation of toxic, harmful, flammable, and explosive gases, which can lead to poisoning, fire, and explosion accidents, or suffocation due to insufficient oxygen levels. When working in confined spaces such as wastewater tanks, septic tanks, fermentation tanks, pickling tanks, manholes, and ditches, the toxic hydrogen sulfide gas that accumulates within these tanks/holes/ditches or escapes as a result of the activities carried out there can cause poisoning, even leading to death within seconds. Before carrying out work in confined spaces, company employees must receive specialized training to understand the safety requirements for working in such environments. Without training and appropriate protective measures, employees have the right to refuse work in confined spaces. Emergency measures must be established, emergency equipment must be available on site, and blind attempts at rescue are strictly prohibited. 【Typical accident】Around 11 a.m. on August 28, 2015, while preparing to resume production after shutting down during the hot season, Anxiang Zhongxin Paper Industry Co., Ltd. in Changde City, Hunan Province, saw one worker suffer poisoning and collapse inside a pulp tank while cleaning waste from it. The company’s owner and seven other workers went into the tank to try to rescue him, and they too were poisoned as a result; ultimately, 7 people died and 2 were seriously injured. 【Lesson Analysis】The company failed to provide its employees with safety training regarding the requirements for working safely in confined spaces and emergency rescue procedures. No emergency equipment was available at the work site, and when an accident occurred, the people on site entered the confined space without taking any protective measures in an attempt to carry out rescue efforts, which resulted in injuries or deaths among the rescuers. In the vast majority of confined space accidents, reckless attempts to rescue victims lead to an increase in casualties. 【Key Points】In the event of an accident during work in a confined space, the personnel on site should immediately call the police; attempting rescue blindly is prohibited. Emergency responders should take proper protective measures, wearing necessary breathing equipment and rescue gear. Enterprises should establish emergency response plans for incidents in confined spaces and conduct regular emergency drills to continuously improve their ability to handle such situations, thereby preventing the expansion of casualties resulting from reckless attempts at rescue.