Fossil fuel workers are dying inhaling gases – despite US warnings to big oil

After multiple worker fatalities, the US government warned manual gauging was dangerous. The oil industry seems to have not taken note, activists say

• This story is co-published with Drilled, a non-profit newsroom focused on climate accountability

Jeff Springman climbed the metal stairs on an oil storage tank at a production site in west Texas and opened the small hatch at the top.

He was going to test the fluid in the tank before pumping it into his truck, a practice known as manual gauging. Instead he was engulfed by invisible chemicals that had built up inside.