Scaled Composites Space Tourism Firm Fined Over Deaths

$25,870 seems like a paltry slap on the wrist for three deaths, but I
suppose the victims' families will likely demand substantially more.


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http://www.latimes.com/business/care...,5443287.story
Space tourism firm fined over deaths

Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites must pay $25,870 after three workers
died at its Mojave test facility. Criminal or civil charges could
still be filed.

By John Johnson Jr., Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
January 19, 2008

Scaled Composites, the fledgling space tourism company founded by
rocket pioneer Burt Rutan, was fined $25,870 on Friday as a result of
an accident last July that killed three workers at the firm's Mojave,
Calif., testing facility.

The fine covered five violations of workplace safety codes, including
a failure to maintain a safe working environment and to properly train
workers handling hazardous materials, according to the California
Division of Occupational Safety and Health.

The three workers -- Eric Dean Blackwell, 38; Charles Glen May, 45;
and Todd Ivens, 33 -- were killed in an explosion at a remote testing
site at the Mojave Air and Space Port on July 26. Three other
employees were injured in the blast, which occurred when a tank of
nitrous oxide ignited during a test of the spacecraft's propellant
system.

....

Of the five violations cited, two were listed as serious, meaning that
they carried a substantial risk of death or serious injury. One
citation, imposing an $18,000 fine, charged that the company failed to
correct unsafe conditions or workplace practices associated with the
handling of nitrous oxide.

A second accused the firm of failing to inform workers about and train
them in the safe use of hazardous materials, specifically nitrous
oxide.

All five violations have been corrected, said Cal/OSHA spokeswoman
Kate McGuire. She said her office does not determine criminal
negligence. That will be up to Kern County Dist. Atty. Edward R.
Jagels. Steve Katz, supervisor of the district attorney's white collar
crime section, said he hadn't seen the results of the state inquiry.
After reviewing it, prosecutors could file criminal, civil or no
charges, he said.



http://www.newscientist.com/article/...0-seconds.html
Space pioneer fined

Private rocket-builder Scaled Composites has been fined $25,870 over
an accident that killed three of its employees in July 2007.
California's industrial safety agency said the company failed to fully
train employees to handle nitrous oxide, which exploded during tests
of its SpaceShipTwo craft.



http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/space/5468426.html
Jan. 19, 2008, 2:02AM
Space tourism firm is fined $25,870 after deadly mishap

By JOHN JOHNSON JR.
Los Angeles Times
....
Rutan said it was the first injury during a test in the company's
25-year history. Shortly after the accident, the company established
the Scaled Family Support Fund to channel donations to the families of
the injured and dead.



http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/22733186/
Spaceship builder faces fines for fatal blast
State officials fault training at Scaled Composites; $25,870 in fines
sought
NBC News video

Fatal explosion in Mojave desert
July 27, 2007blast at a Mojave Air and Space Port facility belonging
released nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, into the air. NBC's Lester
Holt reports.
....
Until the blast, Scaled had not lost any workers on the job since its
founding in 1982 by maverick aerospace designer Burt Rutan. In 2004,
Rutan's SpaceShipOne achieved a spaceflight milestone by climbing more
than 62 miles (100 kilometers) high on a suborbital journey above
Mojave. It went on to make two more flights to win the $10 million
Ansari X Prize.
....
Rutan said at the time of the accident the test had been carried out
safely many times during the SpaceShipOne program and once before for
the SpaceShipTwo program.



http://www.newstin.com/sim/us/38745222/en-009-001080412

NewsTin has found 27 articles related to this story.

Inspectors cite rocket-builder Scaled Composites over explosion that
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The company that flew the first privately funded manned rocket into
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