The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) will be assisting the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) in its investigation of a fatal, Feb. 23, 2018, natural gas-fueled explosion in Dallas, Texas. The USACE began taking soil samples this week in the area of Espanola Drive and Durango Drive in Dallas, to help the NTSB evaluate the technical accuracy of the preliminary geotechnical assessment report.

The new kid on the block – Tesla – is tops when it comes to equipping its vehicles with automatic emergency braking (AEB), although several other manufacturers aren’t far behind, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS).

An OSHA investigation into a worker’s burn injuries has led to safety citations issued to the operator of a Chili’s Grill and Bar restaurant in Florida. The employee of Brinker Florida Inc. suffered the injuries at the company’s Doral location when he fell from an unguarded platform into a hot water bath.

The FDA is to blame for the sharp rise in e-cigarette use among the nation’s youths – and its latest proposal to fix the problem won’t accomplish much. That’s according to the American Lung Association (ALA), which is giving a thumbs-down to the FDA’s “Modifications to Compliance Policy for Certain Deemed Tobacco Products.” ALA president and CEO says the agency’s plan “falls far short” of what is needed to keep e-cigarettes out of the hands of young people.

OSHA has cited Nemak USA Inc. – based in Sheboygan, Wisconsin – for exposing workers to metalworking fluids used on aluminum after three employees were diagnosed with occupational hypersensitivity pneumonitis, a debilitating lung disease. The company faces penalties of $26,520 for two serious health violations, the maximum penalty allowed by law.

Small and midsize business owners who are struggling to find a way to address prescription drug misuse among their employees can get help from Sharing Solutions, an initiative just launched by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation. Said Carolyn Cawley, president of the Chamber Foundation; “Employer specific resources are thin, and they’re scattered. Our campaign collects and curates credible resources to help employers get what they need more quickly.”

The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) will ground the type of aircraft involved in the Ethiopian Airlines crash on Sunday and a Lion Air accident in October, according to an announcement made today by President Donald Trump. The Ethiopian incident claimed the lives of 189 people while the Lion Air crash killed 346.

A pilot’s failure to perform a go-around when his plane became unstable on its approach to Teterboro Airport in New Jersey caused the plane to stall at a law altitude and ultimately, to crash into a commercial building and parking lot about a half mile from the intended runway. Both pilots, the only occupants aboard the aircraft, died in the crash.

The integration of the social determinants of health paradigm by occupational and public health researchers and institutions is leading to a recognition of the need for a more holistic and nuanced perspective on work and its impact on population health (Ahonen et al 2018; Schulte and Vainio, 2010; WHO 2008). Fundamental to this transformation is the need to complement traditional approaches to occupational health with new conceptual and methodological perspectives that can better account for the social aspects of health and well-being.

The FDA has until March 15 to issue a final rule mandating that cigarette makers place graphic health warnings on cigarette packs and in advertising, a federal judge ruled last week. The order by U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts was in response to a lawsuit filed in October 2016 by eight public health and medical groups and several individual pediatricians.