Atmospheric hazards include things such as oxygen deficiencies, dusts, chemical vapors, welding fumes, fogs, and mists that can interfere with the body’s ability to transport and utilize oxygen, or that have negative toxicological effects on the human body, according to a University of South Carolina paper on confined space training. Before entry into most confined…

More than a dozen Los Angeles Fire Department personnel worked to rescue a person trapped 50 feet inside a sewer pipe in November, 2019, according to the Sacramento Bee. Fire officials said in a Facebook post that the person became stuck in the confined space in Wilmington, a neighborhood of the Southern California city near Long…

This is one in a series of informational fact sheets highlighting OSHA programs, policies or standards. It does not impose any new compliance requirements. Atmospheric testing is required for two distinct purposes: evaluation of the hazards of the permit space and verification that acceptable conditions exist for entry into that space. A confined space is…

Is a basement in a residential home that is designed for continuous occupancy by a homeowner a confined space under the standard? No, provided the basement is configured as designed (e.g., has permanent stairs, walk-out entry/exit, or egress window installed). Before a set of stairs is installed in a residential home into a basement, home…

Does the mere presence of a physical hazard in an attic, crawl space, or basement (before steps are installed) make the space a permit-required confined space under the standard? No. However, if the attic, crawl space, or basement (before steps are installed) is a confined space, the presence of a physical hazard in the space…

What is a confined space? A confined space means a space that (1) is large enough and so configured that an employee can bodily enter it; (2) has limited or restricted means for entry and exit; and (3) is not designed for continuous employee occupancy (see 29 C.F.R. 1926.1202). All three criteria must be met…

In fiscal year 2019 federal OSHA conducted 160 specific confined space inspections and issued a total of 445 citations. Total assessed penalties equaled $2,687,563. Manufacturing industries accounted for most of the penalties — $1.663 million. Other industries cited: transportation and warehousing, mining and oil and gas extraction, wholesale trade, and healthcare. Construction firms were penalized…

OSHA issued this memorandum in 2019 to its regional administrators to provide clarification about how 29 CFR 1926.353(b)(1) applies when welding, cutting, and heating operations are performed within a confined space, in light of the promulgation of 29 CFR part 1926 subpart AA. As explained in its preamble, the requirements of subpart AA apply to…

The Fatal Accident Circumstances and Epidemiology (FACE) Project is a service of the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Division of Safety Research (DSR). FACE reports focus primarily upon selected electrical-related and confined space-related fatalities. The purpose of the FACE program is to identify and rank factors that influence the risk of fatal…