IBEW Loses Sister Katharina (Kat) Engnell

November 28, 2008 — Ms Sparky

The IBEW loses Sister Katharina (Kat) Engnell, a licensed journeyman electrician from Local 46 in Seattle, Washington. Engell was electrocuted and died on the job on November 20, 2008 at the Saint Gobain glass plant.

Kat Engnell was an amazing woman. Originally from the South, Kat moved to Seattle after receiving her Masters Degree in Fine Arts. She bought a beautiful home in Seattle’s Columbia City neighborhood and then decided to become an electrician. She started attending the PSEJATC Apprenticeship program in 2000.

Kat was a most humble, hard working, serious electrician. Diversity and full inclusion in the electrical industry were passions of hers. The fact that a scholarship for those seeking to become Union Trades people is being funded in her name testifies to that. If you would like to donate, please make checks or money orders payable to the Katharina Engnell Memorial Schollarship Fund, Account 471001014441 at Key Bank.

Her interests included kayaking, raising hens, collecting antiques, creating and teaching art, politics, unionism, and rocking out to hippy music. If there was a party, Kat was there having a good time. She was a fantastic mechanic, intellectual, and a bohemian all in one. All who knew her can say that her kindness and generosity were boundless. She will be missed but will live on in the memories and stories of her, and in the kindness and care we show to each other in this truly dangerous field.

There is a memorial at the job site and a memorial service will be held at the IBEW Local 46 Hall in Kent, Washington on Thursday, December 4, 2008 at 5:00 p.m.

For me, the loss of any worker on the job is tragic. But the loss of an electrician is personal.

My personal condolences to Kat’s friends and family. My thanks to Nicole Grant for this information.

Ms Sparky
IBEW Local 48
Portland, Oregon

Update: The following info was taken from IBEW Local 46 website.
This item was posted on the IBEW Local 46 web site
http://www.ibew46.com/kat.html :

IBEW Local 46 Electrician, Kat Engnell, was killed at work, Thursday,
November 20, 2008, during the day shift at the Saint Gobain glass plant. Kat
was up on a metal platform, like a catwalk, doing lighting maintenance. It
is normal to work on equipment up there while it is still ‘hot’,
unfortunately, while Kat was changing out a 500W 120V fixture, after making
sure that the ground and neutrals had both been made up, she was
electrocuted and died. She was found by a Local 46 Brother working on sight
who stayed with her body until the fire crew got her down and took her away.

The following comment was left via email by a Safety professional:

I suspect that she was not wearing rubber insulating gloves, considered by
most electricians as unnecessary and too cumbersome for this type of low
voltage work.

According to 1910 subpart S
1910.333(a)(1) “Live parts to which an employee may be exposed shall be
deenergized before the employee works on or near them….” (does not apply to
circuits of 50 volts or less)
1910.333(a)(2) “If the exposed live parts are not deenergized (i.e., for
reasons of increased or additional hazards or infeasability) other
safety-related work practices shall be employed …”
1910.335(a)(1)(i) Employees working in areas where there are potential
electrical hazards shall be provided with, and shall use, electrical
protective equipment that is appropriate for the specific parts of the body
to be protected and for the work to be performed.

NFPA 70E 2009 – Table 130.7(C)(9)
Panelboards or other equipment rated 240 volts and below
Work on energized electrical conductors or circuit parts, including voltage
testing requires the use of Rubber Insulating gloves and Insulated or
Insulating Tools.

Posted in Women in Construction. Tags: IBEW, Women Electricians, Women in Construction. 15 Comments »

How Does The “US-Iraq Security Pact” Affect KBR And Other U.S. Civilians?

November 28, 2008 — Ms Sparky

US-Iraq Security Pact, by the Numbers

November 28, 2008
Agence France-Presse

Iraq’s parliament on Nov. 27 endorsed a landmark military pact that will govern some 150,000 U.S. Soldiers assigned to 400 bases across the country beginning Dec. 31, when the United Nation’s mandate now governing the troops expires.

Here are the main points of the deal, spelled out in the official English version of the 24-page agreement.

Article 4: All military operations undertaken in Iraq must be conducted with the agreement of the Iraqi government and should be “fully coordinated” with Iraqi authorities through a joint U.S.-Iraqi committee. However, U.S. and Iraqi forces have the right to “legitimate self defence within Iraq” as defined by international law.

Article 12: Iraq will have the right to prosecute U.S. troops and associated civilians for “grave premeditated felonies” committed “outside agreed facilities and areas and outside duty status.” Should they be arrested however, they must be handed over to U.S. custody for the duration of the investigation and trial, and U.S. forces are responsible for certifying whether the alleged crime took place while the individual was on “duty status.”

No such immunity is extended to private security contractors, over whom the agreement grants Iraq the “primary right to exercise jurisdiction.” (Read the rest of the story here…)

Posted in KBR, Media Coverage, Politics, Working Overseas. Tags: Iraq, KBR, Politics. 2 Comments »

Thanksgiving Message

November 27, 2008 — Ms Sparky

A special Thanksgiving message to our Troops.

Thank you for protecting our country and my family. I know you would much rather be with your families today. But can’t because you are committed too keeping our country safe from those who would harm us.

A special thanks to the Veterans who have already served this country, some paying with the ultimate price. Thank you on so many levels.

A special thank you to the Soldier’s families who will sit down to dinner today without them. Although they will not be at your table, I know they will be in your hearts.

To my civilian friends who are committed to protecting and caring for our soldiers….Thank You!

So….what am I thankful for?

The freedoms I enjoy.
The security I expect.
And the Soldier who gives me that.

Ms Sparky

Posted in Holiday Tribute To Soldiers. Tags: Holidays, Thanksgiving. No Comments »

CNN Lou Dobbs – Iraq contractor (KBR) in trouble – Video

November 25, 2008 — Ms Sparky

For those that missed it…here is the CNN Special Investigation Report that was on Lou Dobbs on November 25, 2008. If you are having problems seeing the video in Internet Explorer click HERE and see if that makes a difference.

Posted in Electrocutions/Shocks, KBR, Media Coverage. Tags: Iraq, KBR. 7 Comments »

Contractor (KBR) for military committed serious violations

November 24, 2008 — Ms Sparky

By Abbie Boudreau and Scott Bronstein
CNN Special Investigations Unit

WASHINGTON (CNN) — A contractor providing services to the U.S. military in Iraq and Afghanistan has committed serious violations of its contract, mainly by conducting inadequate inspections of electrical wiring and grounding at American bases, according to Pentagon sources.

Ryan Maseth, a 24-year-old Green Beret, died in his shower January 2.

The Pentagon findings on Houston, Texas-based KBR stem from the widely publicized death of Sgt. Ryan Maseth, a highly decorated 24-year-old Green Beret from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Maseth was electrocuted while taking a shower at his base in Baghdad.

His January 2 death was just one of many deaths now believed to be linked to shoddy electrical work done at U.S. bases, managed by U.S. contractors, according to Pentagon sources.

The Pentagon’s Defense Contract Management Agency recently gave KBR a “Level III Corrective Action Request” — issued only when a contractor is found in “serious noncompliance” and just one step below the possibility of suspending or terminating a contract, Pentagon officials said.

In KBR’s case, it means that the contractor’s inspections and efforts to ensure electrical safety for troops have been unacceptable, and must be significantly improved, Pentagon sources told CNN. (Read the rest of the story here…)