Safety Bulletins

Not Over Slips and Trips Just Yet!

Slips and trips, especially when carrying objects, take a toll

In one lost time incident, a skidworker slipped over and extended his left hand/arm to break the fall resulting in a damaged ligament in his left hand. In a medical treatment incident, a worker was walking back to his processing machine with a saw chain in his hand when he tripped and cut his hands on the chain. Keeping our work area clean of debris, and walking only on level and solid ground are two helpful tips.

Planter working on steep slopes takes a tumble

Noggin #452 12/10/17: Planting on steep hillside (averaging 40 degrees) the ground gave out under a planter who slid uncontrollably downhill for 30 meters. During the slide he caught his right arm up in some slash which slowed him down. This contact resulted in a sprained shoulder and some minor grazes and lacerations on his arms, legs and hands. When he eventually came to a halt he was winded and stayed put until help arrived.

The choices we face, the decisions we must make

Any work with circumstances like those noted above will have the same level of risk! The chances of an accident are high, and if we continue to apply the same management strategies in these known problem areas, we are showing we are not learning form the past. Applying the same strategies will invariably lead to repeat incidents of harm and/or damage!

When presented with high-risk work, we (everyone involved) must take appropriate steps to manage risk by deciding to eliminate or minimise worker exposure to the underlying hazards. Sometimes elimination will mean not completing some part or all of the work. If we do choose to do the work and adopt minimisation, then the controls we put in place need to be realistic and substantially reduce the risk!

View this article in Safety Bulletin 109