LUCAS OIL’S FILM COMPANY MAY FACE $91,000 FINE FOR AMA NATIONAL MOTOCROSS DEATH


According to www.swrnn.com: A Corona-based chemical products manufacturer is facing $91,000 in fines for allegedly creating hazardous working conditions, which contributed to the death of a Colorado man.

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety & Health Administration cited Lucas Oil Production Studios, a subsidiary of Lucas Oil Inc., for incidents that occurred June 25 outside of Lakewood, Colo.

The production company was setting up a film shoot at the Thunder Valley Motocross race course when a 57-year-old videographer, Stuart Keene, fell from a scissor lift, plunging more than 20 feet to his death, according to OSHA.

Federal officials say the guardrails on the lift had been removed, exposing Keene and other camera personnel and technicians to danger.

“Lucas Oil Production Studios failed to provide its employees with a safe and healthful workplace,” said Greg Baxter, OSHA’s regional administrator in Denver. “The company demonstrated indifference to the requirements of the Occupational Safety & Health Act, which resulted in fatal injuries to its employee.”

Calls to Lucas Oil were not immediately returned.

OSHA issued citations for one alleged willful violation, two alleged serious violations and one other-than-serious violation.

The serious violations stemmed from “the employer’s failure to provide any training to employees on the proper operating procedures of all-terrain scissor lifts, and exposing employees to crushing and amputation hazards” by allowing lifts to be modified without a safety protocol, according to an OSHA statement.

The “other-than-serious” violation resulted from Lucas Oil’s alleged failure to report the cameraman’s death to the federal agency.

The company has 15 days to request an informal conference with OSHA’s regional director and propose a settlement or contest the findings before the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

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