FMCSA issues safety advisory on certain pressure relief devices
The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) issued a safety advisory on the use of certain Fisher Controls pressure relief devices on cargo tank motor vehicles.
According to FMCSA, Emerson Process Management Regulator Technologies Inc. in 2013 issued a voluntary recall on Fisher Controls pressure relief device models H732 and H832. The company expanded the recall in 2014 to include models H282, H882, H5112 and H8112. After a recent crash involving an MC330 cargo tank motor vehicle, FMCSA and National Transportation Safety Board investigators discovered that one of the pressure relief devices installed on the crashed cargo tank motor vehicle was a Fisher Controls model H282.
FMCSA says all owners and operators of MC330 and MC331 cargo tank motor vehicles that follow 49 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) 173.315(k) should immediately inspect their pressure relief devices for these Fisher Controls model numbers. Any cargo tank motor vehicle that uses one of the recalled pressure relief device models must be taken out of service to remove and replace the pressure relief device. FMCSA adds that the continued use of these pressure relief devices is a safety concern, violating 49 CFR 180.405, because they were not manufactured or intended for use on cargo tank motor vehicles.
Registered inspectors and companies that have stocks of Fisher Controls pressure relief devices should take steps to ensure the model numbers recalled are not used for hazardous materials transportation service.
More information about the advisory is available by emailing Paul Bomgardner, chief of the Department of Transportation’s hazardous materials division.