Confined Air Spaces

Seven Egyptians die in rural septic tank accident

Wed 19 Sep 2007, 8:55 GMT

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CAIRO, Sept 19 (Reuters) - Six Egyptian men died one after another as they descended into a rural septic tank in a failed attempt to rescue a 17-year-old who had entered the tank to fix a drainage problem, security sources and a family member said.
The youth, Ayman Mohamed Gumaa, also died on Tuesday after he succumbed to fumes and fell into sludge at the bottom of the tank in the village of Rifa near the southern city of Assiut, the sources said.
Gumaa's mother, Zeinab Mohamed Ali, told Reuters she had sent her son into the tank because water was backing up into the family home, but panicked when he didn't return.
"I called out, Ayman, Ayman, Ayman, but he didn't respond. So I called for his uncle," she told Reuters at a municipal hospital where the bodies were taken after the incident.
Security sources said that Gumaa's 45-year-old uncle entered the tank to try to save him, but also succumbed to the fumes.
A neighbour, his brother, another neighbour and his two brothers all proceeded to enter the tank to rescue others in the group. But they all died after exposure to noxious gases in the tank, a health official said.
"They couldn't bear the fumes and they suffocated and died," Ali said.
Security sources said civil defence forces later retrieved all seven bodies. They said it was not immediately clear if the men died from exposure to noxious gases in the tank or drowned after possibly losing consciousness.



http://africa.reuters.com/wire/news/usnL19856877.html


Don't think it can't happen here in the states....it does. Septic tank, cisterns or old root cellars are known for questionable safety.

Having a fan blowing outside air in is a good start for prevention of these issues.

This can happen anywere even here in the good old US.
Knolage is what helps.Send it to on!

Just having a fan blowing air won't do a lot of good. You need a blower that has a duct (hose) lowered to near the bottom of he enclosed space and it must be blowing long enough to thoroughly ventilate the space before allowing anyone to enter.

Technically, you need a whole lot more than that. You need a gas monitor to sample the air for both combustibles and for oxygen content along with a "safe operating plan" with detailed steps to take before entering and also a rescue plan in case of an accident.


What is

Knolage

Click to expand...

and where do you get it?

fumes can be odorless, and can kill you fast. You keep breathing but you are getting no oxyygen, so you suddenly fall down, faint and die.

The oxygen was the only missing ingredient in the air in the septic tank that day. That is why it is odorless and will kill you.

This has happened often here, there and everywhere. I can dig up newspaper story archives to "prove" it has been mentioned in the news. I can remember reading about it several times. Search for this along with the word campground and you will find stories.

-- Maybe, just maybe, a truly sharp-witted person can handle the lack of oxygen (as if holding your breath), and get back to the ladder and scream before falling unconscious. Maybe, just maybe, someone experienced with holding their breath can get in and out without dying. A body can be trained to relax with no air for a long number of seconds.

People who run big campgrounds know about the risks, because their association newsletters talk about it often. Still, every time someone dies I'll bet it's because they thought they could handle the risk of running out of oxygen. Too late now, to interview them to find out what they were thinking.

It's the lack of oxygen, it's not the smell. I'll bet something got warbled in the original reporting, or in the translation. It's not just because of a smell.

david

Furd said:

Just having a fan blowing air won't do a lot of good. You need a blower that has a duct (hose) lowered to near the bottom of he enclosed space and it must be blowing long enough to thoroughly ventilate the space before allowing anyone to enter.

Technically, you need a whole lot more than that. You need a gas monitor to sample the air for both combustibles and for oxygen content along with a "safe operating plan" with detailed steps to take before entering and also a rescue plan in case of an accident.


What is and where do you get it?

Click to expand...

I'm talking on the low-end scenario of normal practice. Ask a great deal of those and they'll look at you dumbfounded if you have a gas monitor on the truck.

I did work on a huge cistern setting a submersible pump and it had 2 lids. I had 2 fans, one blowing in and one pulling out so there was a steady flow of air through this underground room.

There wasn't much water in the cistern but I knew the hazards even though water supports O2.

Knowing the dangers and knowing when to call for help instead of entering a danger zone is the difference between life and death in the scenario's played out above.

This happened at a chicken ranch recently where a few died the same way trying to unclog a drain. The methane levels were so high that it killed them.

And I'm sure they've done that procedure 100's of times and thought it was no big deal.

Backflow assemblies can be installed in the lower parts of a building and it's possible for low levels of oxygen to be present.....depending on the situation.

Confined Space

There are many hazards associated with confined spaces. For a brief primer, check out:

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Confined_space

Deaths continue to happen here in the states all the time. I believe deaths from trenching operations (failure to properly install and use shoring) are the most common.

-Sam

Furd said:

Just having a fan blowing air won't do a lot of good. You need a blower that has a duct (hose) lowered to near the bottom of he enclosed space and it must be blowing long enough to thoroughly ventilate the space before allowing anyone to enter.

Technically, you need a whole lot more than that. You need a gas monitor to sample the air for both combustibles and for oxygen content along with a "safe operating plan" with detailed steps to take before entering and also a rescue plan in case of an accident.


What is and where do you get it?

Click to expand...

From your local heath dept.

Furd said:

What is

Quote:
Knolage

Click to expand...

and where do you get it?

Click to expand...

Freudian transference, an inside job.