VIDOR, Texas — A Vidor company is being fined by OSHA after an employee died from being engulfed in flames while on the job.
TMS International, LLC is being fined $177,454 for the March 4, 2024 fatal accident.
On March 4, a little before 2 p.m. an employee, identified as 61-year-old John May, was doing slag pit operations inside the furnace slag pit where the molten slag was being smoothed out.
As May was moving the molten slag with wheel loader, the drive shaft and hydraulic hoses broke, causing a fire.
May, who was over the molten slag when the fire began, was engulfed in flames within two seconds, according to OSHA.
The wheel loader could not move and it took around 12 minutes to suppress the fire enough so the loader could be pulled out of the slag pit.
OSHA says the loader was operated without the right components for protection against extreme temperatures.
May sustained multiple burns and was taken to the hospital, where he died.
