Job of the Week -- Zion Diving

Job of the Week

Mobile Medical Involved With Diving Rescue
SAFETY RESCUE OPERATION SUCCESSFUL

Mobile Medical Corporation, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, provider of on-site industrial medical services, was involved with a critical rescue operation with the safety team from Kenny Construction. Kenny, a large industrial contractor in Illinois, is building a new 53 million-dollar Peaker Power Plant in Zion, Illinois. Inside a tank containing 1.5 million gallons of diesel fuel, a chain blocking pumps needed to be shortened in order for the turbines to work correctly. Divers from Lambourne Environmental Diving Services were called in to complete the task, which involved entering the tank and correcting the problem. Wearing specialized rubber suits for protection, the divers had only 100 minutes to enter the tank and fix the chain before they would begin to be exposed to the toxic environment. Because of this potentially dangerous procedure, Mobile Medical Corporation, which has a first aid station set up on-site for this construction project, was also on hand to set up rapid extrication in case of an accident or emergency. The entire operation took three days with two major dives a day. No major injuries were sustained throughout the entire operation. However, because the special helmets would eventually deteriorate from the caustic environment, it was necessary to flush the eyes of several workers during the procedure. Oxygen was also administered to the lead diver after one particularly exhausting dive.