Safety first The main causes of accidents

Safety first

The main causes of accidents in the workplace are not dramatic fires and explosions, but very ordinary accidents that can be easily prevented by workers looking out for their own safety and the safety of others.

Many of these accidents are minor, but some cause death or serious injury. • The most common cause of accidents is from slips, trips, and falls, followed by lifting and carrying.

slips slips

trips trips

falls falls

• Accidents involving cuts, burns, dropped objects, falling from height, and collisions are also common but often avoidable. • The main preventable measure is safety training.

• All employees in the oil and gas industry go through regular safety training courses to encourage a strong safety culture.

For hazardous areas, employees will be issued with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) which must be worn in signed areas.

• Safety boots

hard hats

overalls,

gloves gloves

and safety glasses are usually a standard issue

In addition, ear protectors and special trades' equipment such as welding shields, goggles,

and gloves will be issued.

Signs are classified with different shapes and colours to denote whether they are mandatory, warnings, or giving information.

This way to the emergency exit

Do not touch

Do not enter

Wear a hard hat

Wear protectors

Wear the face guard

slippery surface

'Read the instructions before you use the machine. '

Wear safety harness

Hot surface

• Some safety moments could actually be a lesson learnt as well, for example. . . • A worker splashed a substance in his eye and immediately wanted to rinse his eye. He reached for the bottle of drinking water close by to him which he had noticed after starting his shift. The bottle didn't contain fresh drinking water, it contained an acidic substance with a p. H of 1. 5! The casualty was rushed to hospital with sever burns to his eye. This is a true event and has been used to highlight the dangers of not properly labelling and storing hazardous substances.

toolbox talk- sometimes abbreviated as TST, a safety meeting held in t he workplace to talk about hazards, safety equipment , and good working practices.

1 The man is standing under the load. The sling is broken, and the load is falling towards him. 2 The load is swinging towards the man. 3 The man's hand is between the load and the sling. This is' dangerous because the crane is starting to lift the load. 4 The crane is lifting a heavy load and falling over towards the man.