A investigation into a June 20 incident that seriously injured an employee at the US Nitrogen chemical plant in Midway has been closed out by the Tennessee Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

US Nitrogen officials provided a response to TOSHA about the incident, which happened about 6 p.m. on June 20 as employees were preparing to drain a tote containing bleach into the main bleach tank in the cooling tower area of the Pottertown Road complex.

“The tote was extended over the tank. The tote slid off the forks of the lift truck and struck an individual, causing injury to the right leg,” an initial company response stated.

The full-time US Nitrogen employee suffered “multiple fractures in the right arm and right leg with lacerations to the right leg” in the incident, the company detailed in a response to TOSHA. The employee’s name and that of company officials who responded to state agencies were redacted in documents obtained from the Tennessee Department of Labor & Workforce Development.

The employee was taken to Johnson City Medical Center. His current condition was not noted in information provided by state agencies.

US Nitrogen plant Manager Dylan Charles has not responded to email questions about the incident.

The company notified TOSHA the day after the incident. TOSHA initiated a “Rapid Response Investigation,” according to documents from the state agency.

The state Department of Labor & Workforce Development notified the company it closed the TOSHA investigation on July 8. US Nitrogen officials wrote that the type of incident that happened June 20 never occurred before at the facility, and the “hazard” that caused it is no longer present.

In a July 8 communication to TOSHA outreach specialist Terry Hopkins, a US Nitrogen official stated “immediate corrective actions” were taken.

“The process of transferring sodium hypochlorate from a tote to the stationary sodium hypochlorate tank was eliminated immediately,” the US Nitrogen official wrote.

Sodium hypochlorate is commonly referred to as bleach.

On June 21, US Nitrogen’s Safety Department “immediately initiated discussions with operations crews and maintenance in regards to the initial findings from the incident and immediate corrective actions,” the company official wrote.

Powered industrial truck and forklift training “was revised to include specifics for ‘forklift’-style units. Revisions included the use of load rating charts and securement of loads when placing loads at elevated positions. Training has commenced,” the official wrote.

The US Nitrogen official added that a “forklift checklist list has been created” to verify load limits for loads being transported at the plant.

The incident occurred after two employees “were instructed to transfer a tote of sodium hypochlorate into a stationary sodium hypochlorate tank.”

The employee who was injured “instructed the other employee, who was a trained forklift operator, to retrieve a forklift to load and lift the tote to the stationary sodium hypochlorate tank.”

The employee who was injured was giving directions to the forklift operator “to position the tote over the tank.”

US Nitrogen wrote that the injured employee stated, “The forklift completely moved, knocking him off the ladder and onto the concrete containment below.”

The injured employee saw the tote “falling onto the ground and rolling onto him.”

“The tote rolled onto his chest and right leg,” and he “instructed the forklift operator to get the tote off him,” the US Nitrogen account continued.

The forklift operator removed the tote from the injured employee’s torso. “However, his right foot remained trapped,” the description states.

The forklift operator then contacted the plant operations supervisor “and emergency services were notified,” the description states.

Following the incident, “many employees were involved with assisting medical services to remove the tote off his leg and assist with loading (him) for transport to the Johnson City Medical Center.”

US Nitrogen was asked to identify the “root causes” of the incident.

“The root cause of the incident was the forklift operator not following the forklift training protocol for securing the load and use of fork lift load charts,” the company responded. “During the investigation, it was found that the forklift was overloaded beyond its capacity with the boom extended leading to instability of the forklift causing the load to shift.”

The response said the operator was trained and certified in the use of forklifts.

“In reviewing the training documentation, all forklift operators are trained in the importance of center of gravity, load balancing and securement. However, it was determined that the training did not emphasize the use of load charts for extendable boom fork trucks,” the company wrote.

US Nitrogen “discussed with operations personnel the initial findings of the incident and emphasized the importance of securing loads,” the company wrote.

Recommended corrective actions suggested by TOSHA that US Nitrogen indicated will be addressed include “updating powered industrial equipment/forklift training to include specifics for ‘forklift’-style units,” creating and using a forklift checklist “which includes verifying load limits” and reinforcing the use “of safe work permit process for non-standard operating work process.”

According to a July 15 letter from a Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development official to US Nitrogen, TOSHA sent the company a letter on June 23 requesting that plant officials conduct an in-house incident investigation.

The state Department of Labor and Workforce Development received a response from US Nitrogen.

“Based on our review of the information you provided in your response, we have determined that our file on this matter can be closed, and no further action on this incident is anticipated at this time,” wrote Todd Payne, of the TOSHA Review Commission attached to the state Department of Labor.

US Nitrogen LLC, at 471 Pottertown Road, is a subsidiary of Ohio-based Austin Powder Co. It produces nitric acid, ammonia, and liquid ammonium nitrate solution. Liquid ammonium nitrate, or ANSOL, is a component of blasting agents that Austin Powder sells and is created by combining nitric acid and ammonium.

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