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Darwin Awards
2009 Slush Pile

This item was recently submitted by a reader.
Should I include it in the archive?
Vote to tell me what *you* think!

The Farmers and the Well

2009 Reader Submission
Pending Acceptance

Here is the story as found on the Michigan Occupational Safety Hazard Investigation Report site with my commentary in quotations & parentheses "(like this)":

Two Individuals Overcome By Hydrogen Sulfide Gas While Cleaning a Farm Facility Water Well With 28% Liquid Muriatic Acid

SUMMARY

On August 15, 2001, two males, an Amish farmer, 42 years old, and a friend, 60 years old, died from inhalation of hydrogen sulfide gas while cleaning the well screen of a driven point well with 28% uninhibited liquid muriatic acid. (An inhibited acid contains organic additives that protect the metal surface from the action of the acid). The well was approximately 300 ft. from the road, was approximately 150 ft. west of the residence, and was 20-25 ft. downhill from the livestock barn. A 5 ft. x 5 ft. wood shed was built around the well for protection. The shed was approximately 8 ft. tall, had a 30 in. door facing east, had 2 in. x 4 in. studs and had particleboard walls with batt insulation. There were no windows in the shed. "(Sounds sturdy and very unventilated - against all warning signs on muriatic acid containers)" The well pit had concrete walls. The pit was approximately 4½ ft. deep, was 4 ft. x 4 ft. wide, and had a 2 in. x 8 in. wood plank across the pit opening. At the base of the pit, there was a driven point well with a 2-in. steel pipe and a jet pump. The emergency responders found an empty 64-ounce container of muriatic acid, a ¼ full 64-ounce container of muriatic acid, funnel and ½ in. white polypropylene plastic tubing nearby. "(Almost two full bottles? Wow!)" The funnel was outside of the well’s protective structure; the tubing was inside of the well. The well casing was open. The well was running "slow" and the owner thought the problem could be a plugged well screen. The farmer used liquid muriatic acid to clean the screen. The event was unwitnessed, so the actual sequence of events is unknown. There appears to have been a reaction when the muriatic acid was added to the well water, resulting in a hydrogen sulfide emission from the well. A family member of the victim detected the muriatic acid odor and went to investigate. The family member noticed the individuals and went to the house to call emergency personnel. When the emergency responders arrived, the individuals were found in the well pit in approximately 4 in. of water/muriatic acid. Upon arrival at the scene, emergency personnel could detect a muriatic acid odor from the road. One of the individuals succumbed to hydrogen sulfide fumes and died at the scene; the other individual was transported to a local hospital, where he later died. "(Homemade gas chamber, anyone?)"

Submitted on 11/18/2009

Submitted by: Jeanette Allan
Reference: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/face/stateface/mi/01mi061.html August 15, 2001

Copyright © 2009 DarwinAwards.com

>> Moderator Scores <<

Bruce said:
Definitely Toss: Lacks Excellence
Thanks, Jeanette, but we get lots of stories involving people succumbing to vapors similar to this. In fact we've gotten other stories of Amish people dying from the gases of a manure pit. Also, straight reports from government publications are extremely dry reading and not very entertaining. At the very least a humorous writeup would help.


Candi said:
Definitely Toss: Lacks Excellence
What Bruce said.


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