Last week we let three of our colleagues get hurt at work. It is all our responsibilities to stop this from happening – what if it had been you? Nothing is more important than health and safety.
We all know what to do; but we have to do it every single second of every single day:
- FOLLOW THE SAFETY ESSENTIALS – at all times.
- STOP AND THINK – is what I am about to do as safe as it can possibly be?
- STEP IN – speak up if you see someone acting or behaving unsafely.
- FILL IN NEAR MISS HAZARD ALERT CARDS – so that potential dangers are dealt with.
The three injuries last week were serious and could have been avoided if these points had been followed. Here are the injuries people suffered:
- An employee fitter broke three toes in his foot even through protective footwear, when a loading shovel bucket pushed down onto his foot. The fitter had asked the mobile plant operator to rest the loading shovel bucket on top of a redundant pump to hold it secure while he removed a flange. The pump moved and the loading shovel bucket came down on his foot.
Think, what could have been done differently to avoid this happening?
- A contractor broke two bones in his leg. He was replacing the floor in a washroom when his leg slipped between the joists as he fell.
Think, what do you could have been done to prevent this fall?
- A contractor lost the tip of his finger after it was trapped against a handrail by a section of pipe and a securing rope. He was lowering some pipework off a silo roof.
Think, what do you think could be done differently to stop this happening again?
All three incidents are being thoroughly investigated and learning points will be shared via Safety Alerts. But we can all think about what we could do here and now to prevent such incidents again.
Please discuss these with your work colleagues and talk about safety so that you are all looking after yourselves and each other.