Abstract: On February 11, 1998, Employee #1 was on top of a sour water tank blocking in steam eductor valves when he received an acute exposure to hydrogen sulfide. He was on top of the tank alone for about 10 minutes without any additional PPE. He was wearing only flame retardant clothing and a hard hat. Safety procedures require the use of a self-contained breathing air respirator and the necessary breathing air equipment was present on the tank. Hydrogen sulfide guidelines require that an employee must have a respirator on when at the top of the stairway of the tank. Employee #1 was still alive on February 17, 1998, the date this incident was reported to the OSHA office, but his brain activity was only 8 percent of normal. He was on complete life support, and it was very questionable whether he would live. Employee #1 died on February 22, 1998, at John Sealy Hospital - Texas City Medical Branch.