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Crane fire extinguishers during nonworking hours

Summary A contractor sought a variance from carrying fire extinguishers in crane cabs after work ended. OSHA said the cited standards required them during crane operations, not nonworking hours without employee fire exposure, so no variance was needed. OSHA archives the letter.
Document
Federal opinion letter
Agency
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)
Document number
1975-04-30-1
Date issued
April 30, 1975
Status
Archived by the agency
OSHA labels this an archive document and warns that it may no longer represent OSHA policy.
Status last verified October 10, 2026
Topics
Workplace Safety OSHA 1926 OSHA 1910 Cranes Fire Protection Variances
Source
View the official document

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The current status of this document is unclear
OSHA labels this an archive document and warns that it may no longer represent OSHA policy. It may no longer reflect the agency's current position. Treat this page as historical context, not current guidance, and verify current law before relying on anything here.
About this page: The full text below is the official document from Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). Ezel adds the plain-English summary and tracks the document's status. The official source linked on this page is authoritative for any reliance.

NOTICE: This is an OSHA Archive Document, and may no longer represent OSHA Policy. It is presented here as historical content, for research and review purposes only.

April 30, 1975

Mr. L. M. Stribling
Safety Engineer
Heldenfels Brothers Contractors
[Recipient address omitted]
Dear Mr. Stribling:

Secretary of Labor John T. Dunlop has asked me to respond to your letter dated April 14, 1975, requesting a permanent variance from Sections 1926.550(a)(14)(i) and 1910.180(i)(5)(i) Crane and Derricks - Fire Extinguisher Requirements, of the Occupational Safety and Health Regulations for Construction and General Industry.

It appears that you are maintaining a fire extinguisher in the cab of your cranes at all times including those periods (nonworking hours) when the job is not in operation, and a fire hazard to your employees does not exist.

The standards cited above require that a fire extinguisher be located at all operator stations or cabs of the equipment during crane operations. The intent of these standards is to protect your employees from the usual fire hazards associated with crane operations. You are not required to maintain a fire extinguisher in the cab or vicinity of the crane during nonworking hours.

Based on this clarification it would appear that a variance in your situation is unnecessary.

No further action will be taken on your variance application.

Sincerely,

Barry J. White
Associate Assistant Secretary for
Regional Programs

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