OSHA Says Ringling Bros. Agrees to Enhance Safety for Aerial Acts

Hundreds watched as an aerial act at the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus performance in Providence, R.I., went badly wrong on May 4, 2014. A group of aerialists plummeted to the ground, injuring nine of them.

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus will implement ongoing safety enhancements in aerial acts to protect employees against injuries like those sustained by its aerialists during that performance. Feld Entertainment Inc., headquartered in Palmetto, Florida, owns the circus.

The proactive measures are part of a settlement agreement with OSHA concerning a citation issued to the circus in connection with a 2014 incident in which nine employees were injured, eight of them seriously. Eight aerialists were performing an act called a “Hair Hang” when the carabiner used to support them failed and they fell more than 15 feet to the ground. The aerialists, along with a ninth employee who was struck by the falling workers, sustained serious injuries.

“This agreement goes beyond this one case. It commits Ringling Bros. to continual, effective and detailed corrective action that will address and enhance safety for all its aerial acts, so that catastrophic incidents, such as the Providence fall and the needless worker injuries that resulted, never happen again,” said Patrick Griffin, OSHA’s area director  in Rhode Island.

OSHA’s inspection determined that the carabiner used to lift performers was not loaded according to manufacturer’s instructions. The agency cited the circus for one serious violation of occupational safety standards and proposed the maximum fine of $7,000. The circus initially contested its citation and penalties to the independent Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission.

Read Full Article At Ehstoday.com

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