California safety regulators fined the University of California at Los Angeles $31,875 on Monday for three violations of workplace-safety laws in the fatal burning of a worker in a chemistry-lab fire last year, the Los Angeles Times reported today.

The fines stemmed from a December 29 incident in which Sheharbano (Sheri) Sangji, a 23-year-old staff researcher in an organic-chemistry lab, suffered severe burns when she was splashed by a chemical compound that ignites when exposed to air. She died 18 days later.

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health concluded that Ms. Sangji had not been properly trained and was not wearing protective clothing, such as a lab coat, when the compound caught fire, the newspaper said. The safety agency also cited UCLA for failing to correct safety deficiencies, including a failure to wear lab coats, that were noted in an internal report two months before the accident.

UCLA officials said they would not appeal the fine. As is routine procedure in a fatal case, the safety agency will prepare a report for the Los Angeles district attorney to use in considering whether to bring a criminal prosecution. —Josh Keller