A company has been fined after a worker suffered acid burns to his face and neck as he tried to unblock a sink.
Neil Kelly, 52, from Bury, was using a high concentration of sulphuric acid when the corrosive liquid erupted.
It hit the ceiling - then rained down on him, burning through his paper overalls.
He was off work for two months.
His employer - property maintenance firm City Response Ltd - was prosecuted by the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) following the incident in Glencoe Close, Heywood, in December 2009.
Trafford magistrates' court heard Mr Kelly had not been given appropriate protective clothing, training or supervision on how to safely use the sink unblocker, which was made up of 96 percent sulphuric acid.
The chemical erupted when he reached over the sink to turn on the tap, and it mixed with water in an exothermic explosion.
City Response Ltd admitted breaching a regulation under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 by not adequately controlling the exposure of workers to hazardous chemicals.
The company, of Oldham Broadway Business Park in Chadderton, was fined £5,000 and ordered to pay £2,965 in prosecution costs.
Sarah Taylor, investigating inspector at HSE, said: “City Response allowed one of its employees to use dangerous chemicals without anyone making sure he was working safely. As a result, he suffered severe acid burns to his face and body.
“The company should have made sure he used appropriate protective clothing, instead of the paper overalls which were dissolved by the acid. He should also have received training on using the chemical.
“Property maintenance firms must carry out regular checks on the work their employees are doing while they’re away from their normal base, especially if they’re expected to work with dangerous chemicals.”
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The guy must have known what he was dealing with. Bit like the TV advert parody about the guy who falls off a ladder after doing the job for X years!
He probably knows more about handling chemicals than his bosses and because he was careless,he had an accident,obviously it was someone elses fault,according to his parasitic ambulance chaser!
Too much blame and not enough common sense and manipulation. Where there is blame,there's a claim!
Read the label, H2SO4 when mixed with water is explosive, hot, and could actually unblock that pipe by destroying the pipe. It is a very specialist product; I have handled it myself and it can only be stored in a glass container.
Acid and paper suit come on that should have rang alarm bells before even going out to the job.
He should have used Mr Muscle sink unblocker. It works a treat.
What part of this are you not understandingf?
"City Response Ltd admitted breaching a regulation under the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 by not adequately controlling the exposure of workers to hazardous chemicals."
Where there's MEN online, there's an insensitive idiot.
The only part of this I don't like is that there is under H&S an onus on the employee to be active in all jobs i.e., yes the company should have trained, protective equipment should have been in usage but the employee has the legal right to not perform the job if they do not know what they are doing.
And it very much so sounds like the employee did not know what they were doing, it is a dangerous chemical. The company has been correctly found guilty
He should have had the training that we had in school chemistry lessons.
Lily. may her rest be lonng and placid she added water tio the acid.
Betty did just as we taught her, she added acid to the water.
Simple rule that he should have been told about.