Risk Zone
Here – in the risk zone – we present examples of work related accidents and diseases that could have been prevented, if:
- a proper risk assessment had been carried out;
- risks had been eliminated or controlled through appropriate preventive and protective measures;
- workers had been informed about the risks and the prevented measures to adopt, and,
- workers had been trained on health and safety issues.
These examples come from all over Europe, and cover many different industry sectors, working environment and group of workers. They give a sense of the often harrowing stories that lie behind the statistics.
Barn roofWhilst installing a barn roof, a 21-year-old man fell from a 'home-made' basket balanced on the forks of a telehandler, approximately 25 feet above the ground. The young man received serious injuries. Investigators found that the contractor had not met its obligations to ensure that all work at height is planned, supervised and carried out in a safe way, and that workers involved should be trained and competent. |
Mobile platformsA 26-year-old-man died after he fell through fragile false ceiling tiles while he was dismantling mobile platforms as part of a refurbishment project. Simple, practicable steps could have been taken to prevent anyone falling through the tiles, but these were ignored. |
Noise exposureA 25-year-old experienced severe tinnitus after being exposed to amplified music whilst working as a DJ. At the time, he was not aware of the dangers of noise exposure, and so was unable to take preventative action. |
Warehouse fallA serious injury to a young warehouse employee highlighted a number of important safety issues for employers in the warehousing and commercial storage sectors, including supervision of inexperienced workers. A 22-year-old employee received a crushed vertebra and fractured pelvis after he fell 3.5 metres from a temporary platform erected between two racking units in a warehouse. According to investigators, a competent supervisor would have recognised that working at such a height on unsecured boards was unsafe, and should not have been attempted. |
Steel barsA 19-year-old worker was crushed to death by falling steel bars. He had been working underneath a suspended load, held in a sling that was operated by another relatively inexperienced worker. Neither the young worker, nor the person he was working with, in charge of the site, had received adequate instruction and training. Investigators emphasised the duty that employers have to ensure that workers and their supervisors are trained, and urged all construction firms to review their training and induction procedures. |
Warehouse roofA 27-year-old and several others were employed by a company to remove and replace the roof of a warehouse. There was no safe system prepared before the work began and no safety precautions were in place. The young man, who had never worked on a roof before, stepped backwards onto a fragile roof light on an adjoining warehouse, which gave way. He fell nearly 7m landing on the ground floor directly below, and died as a result of his injuries. |
Fruit farmTwo young migrant workers (21 and 27) died after becoming entangled in machinery used on a fruit farm. The task involved the erection and dismantling of ‘poly-tunnels’, which are secured using long ropes. They became entangled while using a tractor-mounted machine to wind up the rope. Risk assessment was lacking, and the tractor-mounted winder was unsuitable, as it did not have an automatic cut off in the event of entanglement. The workers had not been adequately trained, nor made aware of the dangers posed by the task. Investigators drew attention to the fact that many of the workers on the farm were students, who might not have much understanding of safe working practices. |
