Six workers were killed and three others hospitalized Aug. 20 in an accident at a dairy in Colorado, including one high school student. According to local news reports, the workers entered a confined space and were exposed to gas at Prospect Valley Dairy, 41 miles northeast of Denver.
Multiple fatality incidents like that have happened for decades. A worker enters a manure pit, often a tank below an animal confinement building, and is rendered unconscious by exposure to methane, hydrogen sulfide, carbon dioxide, and ammonia. Then another worker enters to try to rescue them and is also overcome. Hydrogen sulfide in particular is toxic and can suffocate workers quickly at high concentrations.
The accident is being investigated by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) but farmworkers aren’t covered by its rules on entering confined spaces, which in other industries require training, air monitoring, and plans for safe rescue.
