What 1,030 Confined Space Deaths Tell Us About Tank Entry
From 2011 to 2018, 1,030 workers died in confined spaces in the US. Tank, bin and vat interiors topped the list. Most tank entries start as a visual task that can be done from the hatch.
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From 2011 to 2018, 1,030 workers died in confined spaces in the US. Tank, bin and vat interiors topped the list. Most tank entries start as a visual task that can be done from the hatch.
From 2011 to 2018, 1,030 workers died in confined spaces in the US. That is about one every three days.
BLS identified the type of space in 643 of those deaths. Tank, bin and vat interiors topped the list with 205. Another 20 died inside tanker trucks, 16 of them from breathing a harmful substance.
The job titles stand out too: 28 vehicle and equipment cleaners and 27 truck drivers. These are people who open hatches on a normal shift.
Most entries start as a look
Check residue, look at a valve, find a dropped part, confirm the tank is clean. Those are visual tasks, and they can be done from the hatch.
The APEX Tanker Inspection Kit puts an optical zoom camera on a T pole that spans the man way, with live video on a rugged tablet. Your team sees inside, records it, and then decides whether anyone needs to go in. See all industrial inspection kits.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Fatal occupational injuries involving confined spaces, 2011 to 2018 (fact sheet, July 2020).
Always test the atmosphere per your site's permit program before you deploy any equipment. Zistos systems do not currently carry intrinsic safety or hazardous location certification (Class I Div 1 / ATEX). If your application requires it, let's talk; we can build the right solution together.