MADAWASKA – For the third time in five weeks, Fraser Paper Inc. has been cited by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and faces more fines totaling $115,000.

On Oct. 14, Fraser was cited for failing to record 65 injuries within seven days of their occurrence in the period between March 2002 and February 2005. The company was fined $55,000.

On Oct. 17, the company was fined $90,500 for five willful and serious violations after the April 20 death of Marc Baron. Baron fell to his death while working atop a huge tank.

Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Labor’s New England OSHA office cited Fraser for failing to record 65 injuries and illnesses that occurred at the company’s Madawaska mill and fined the company $170,000.

According to the OSHA report, the investigation concerning the unrecorded or late recorded injuries and illnesses came from an employee complaint. OSHA examined the company logs and employee files to find the alleged problems.

“I can’t comment on any of this,” Richard Marston, Fraser manager of human resources, said Wednesday.

He said he could not discuss any of the allegations, citations and fines.

The company, according to OSHA papers, has 15 days to appeal the findings.

In the most recent OSHA findings, the company was fined $55,000 for 59 willful violations of not recording incidents. The fine also involves another $55,000 for failing to verify that the incident logs were correct. That was also a willful violation of regulations.

OSHA defines a willful violation as one committed with an intentional disregard of, or plain indifference to, OSHA regulations.

They also face two $1,000 fines for not recording three cases of lost-day injuries and restricted-duty days because of injuries. Finally, there is a $3,000 fine for failure to record incidents within seven days of their occurrence.

“The Occupational Safety and Health Administration requires employers to keep records of work-related injuries and illnesses,” wrote Anthony Lemire, OSHA area director, in a press release. “No one wins when the records are wrong, but it’s the workers who stand to lose the most.”

Lemire also wrote that unrecorded or misrecorded information can obscure the types and severity of injuries in the workplace, undermining efforts to prevent them.

Baron died April 20 when he fell 28 feet into a large tank that usually contains hydrex, a claylike ingredient used in papermaking. The tank is inside the catalog area of the mill.

Baron, an electrician, was wiring a motor atop the tank when a grating platform he was standing on collapsed and he fell into the tank. Baron had worked at Fraser for 27 years. He died instantly of blunt force.

It was the first fatal accident at Fraser since 1962, when two men died when they entered a tank.

Baron’s death brought OSHA to Fraser where they conducted an investigation that ran until Sept. 22, according to OSHA records. The investigation was conducted by OSHA’s Augusta office.

According to Lemire, the citations and penalties surrounding Baron’s fall and death are being contested by the company.