Today we present to you with some selected excerpts from an extensive FoI request from the Health & Safety Authority regarding their investigation into exceptionally poor chemical Health & Safety practices at the Irish Air Corps.
This investigation, the results of which are contained below, occurred after 10 years of annual inspections by the State Claims Agency section of the National Treasury Management Agency. It should be noted that personnel in the NTMA were entitled to performance related gratuities for supposed improvements to the risk profile of of the Irish Air Corps.
A full page of relevant chatter is included in a 27 page PDF here including:
- Original response from Formation Safety Office (FSO) personnel towards an elected PDFORRA rep who raised initial chemical concerns.
- PDFORRA rep being told to tell his members to contact their own unit safety reps and for PDFORRA rep to use “proper channels”
- Formation Safety Office Sgt requesting employment of an occupational hygienist as “we do not have the competency required on site to assess this”
- FSO OC responding that funds for an occupational hygienist had been approved.
- PDFORRA letter to Defence Forces SO Health & Safety regarding concerns about the provision of adequate health surveillance for members in the Air Corps
- Letter to PSO/ACOS & GOC Air Corps from Formation Safety Officer reference to PDFORRA letter containing a number of misleading and / or factually incorrect statements. The line “All the control measures in place meet and exceed best industry standards” has not aged very well.
- Some concerns regarding exposure to fuel & exhaust fumes amongst FTS personnel.
- A stark admission that FTS personnel were not made aware of the dangers of the chemicals used for air display coloured smoke.
- SDS for Keystone Liquid Orang Oil used to make the orange smoke
- Some concerns regarding occurrence of IBD in Refueler Section personnel
- Letter from Formation Safety Officer stating he believed the risk of exposure is low and that there is no issue with provision of PPE
- Unsigned, inadequate and therefore invalid Risk Control Sheet showing a LOW risk rating (every single one of these for any chemicals was LOW).
- HSA letter to Air Corps after inspection prompted by chemical injury of 2 personnel that was not reported.
- Letter from AC Formation Safety Advisor in response to HSA intervention giving a timeline to comply with measures that were a legal obligation since 1989.
- We have redacted the names of those involved.
