At around 10 a.m., a delivery driver at an urban wastewater treatment plant was unloading an intermediate bulk container (IBC) containing soda lye. During this operation, he moved away for a moment to wipe off the lenses on his mask. He approached the truck when he heard an unusual noise of the peristaltic transfer pump. The pump casing suddenly gave way, and he was sprayed with soda lye. As he was not wearing his safety glasses, his left eye and forehead were burned, keeping him away from work for seven days for medical reasons.

The pump hose had been replaced less than a year earlier, in accordance with the maintenance requirements of the chemical supply company. The company initiated the following measures to prevent this type of accident happening again:

• audit of drivers wearing PPE,
• hose replacement frequency shortened to every 6 months,
• pump hoses lubricated by immersion in glycerine every 6 months,
• drivers equipped with a spare hose, so that they can change it as soon as seeping is noted,
• new delivery trucks are to be equipped with diaphragm pumps.