OSHA Fines New Mexico Dispensary After Explosion

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The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration has fined a New Mexico medical cannabis company $13,500 for a dozen violations after the agency completed an eight-month investigation into a hash oil explosion that seriously burned two employees.

The powerful explosion (see video of it in the link above) occurred at New MexiCann Natural Medicine in Santa Fe last July, when two employees were making concentrated hash oil with butane, the Albuquerque Journal reported.

The incident landed both employees in the hospital, one of whom was in critical condition for several weeks and had to undergo multiple surgeries. The other had to receive skin grafts on his hands, arms and legs.

New MexiCann runs cultivation, processing and dispensary operations.

OSHA subsequently performed two separate investigations, one for safety hazards and one for health hazards.

The first found seven serious violations, and the second found five.

New MexiCann settled the seven safety violations for $7,250, even though OSHA initially was going to fine the dispensary twice that much, and also paid $6,250 for the health violations.