On 1/3/2023 we had a food truck explode while setting up for service at Newport News Shipyard which is part of the business that we manage. For 2 weeks we were unable to use propane for our food truck operations.
Our team on the ground with the help of our Safety department enacted new safety measures, daily check lists, verified documents and inspections for all vendors, as well as an increased focus on safety in our existing food safety inspections.
Within 2 weeks of the return of propane, i found 3 propane leaks that would have been missed had our program not been in effect. I had to completely shut down the food truck operations when the leaks were found and then direct them out for repairs and certify that the repairs had been made prior to being allowed to resume operations.
The food truck program at Newport News Shipyard is a Breakfast, Lunch, and dinner operation with up to 26 different food truck operations serving at up to 44 locations/ service points during the day and week and operates 7 days a week to feed a population of 25,000 ppl. The direct work that i was involved in made the food service at this customer a safer place for all as well as enabled the customer to continue to allow fresh made food to be sold on site. The new safety programs are saving lives daily through the safeguards that we created.
