Archive for category: Tool Box Talks

If a crew is working on a particularly hazardous task, we use red tape to keep other workers from entering freely. So does this mean we can just stumble into anyone’s work area that has no red tape without consent or knowledge of our presence? I definitely wouldn’t recommend it. This just in… all jobs on site have hazards! You have no idea if you are about to enter a fab tent, just at the right time to get grinder debris straight in the face or a hoarding right while a pipe is being lifted right where you’re standing. If you were not a part of that crew’s planning or FLRA/JHA for the day, you need to let them know you’re there. This is as simple as radioing ahead if possible or just a shout out before jumping up on some scaffolding or entering a fab tent. Workers in these areas have safe guarded for passers by, but not for the element of surprise. So do them and yourself a huge favour and let everyone know you’re there and want to enter and wait for the workers to okay it.

Frostbite is when your skin actually freezes due to extreme cold or even touching extremely cold items (another reason to keep your gloves on, especially while handling anything metal such as a wrench in extremely cold conditions). Frostbite can leave you with damaged tissue, which will always be more susceptible to injury in cold conditions for the rest of your life… Not fun if you work outside. It can leave you with all sorts of injuries from blisters all the way to amputation, depending on severity. Also keep in mind that frostbite can go hand-in-hand with hypothermia. If you are suffering from hypothermia your body will limit your blood flow to your extremities to keep your core warm therefore, all your extremities will cool at a rapid pace leaving you much more susceptible to extreme frostbite. Signs of frostbite include the area being cold (obviously), with it stinging or tingling, followed by numbness. Discolored skin, such as red, purple and in extreme cases white. The area could also be very hard to the touch. If this is happening to you or a co-worker, get somewhere warm. You should try and warm the area very slowly. In extreme cases call emergency crews before performing any first aid. But in mild-to-moderate cases, you can try to warm the area slowly by placing it in warm water. Do not use hot and do not pour warm water directly onto the area. You could also try to wrap in a warm cloth. Frostbite needs to be taken very seriously, as it can leave you with lifelong injuries.

Trench foot is a less severe form of frostbite caused by having wet feet for too long. Similar to frostbite the signs of trench foot are the affected area may be tingly, itchy or develop blisters. If this happens to your coworker warm the feet slowly and ensure they are dry. Tomorrow we will finish up with how to prevent cold stress illnesses.

 

We definitely can’t complain too much about the weather so far this winter… But that doesn’t mean it’s going to stay that way. Temperatures can drop way below zero in these parts. You know, when it actually hurts to breathe (ugggghh why do we live here?). Every site and/or company has its own limits on cold weather. However, I recall working on one site, it was so cold every other company pulled the plug on working that day except ours. We were told to dress warm and we better not get caught in the warm up shack for more than 5 mins every hour. Days like these I thanked my lucky stars I was a welder and I could warm up from preheating, mid heading and after heating my pipe all day. (Okay the last two weren’t necessary but it was -38° people). If you find yourself in a situation where you have to work in ungodly cold temperatures, you need to know the signs of danger and what to if you find yourself in that situation.

First, let’s go over the types of cold stress. You have trench foot, frostbite and hypothermia (mild, moderate and severe). Let’s start with all we need to know on hypothermia, including prevention. Hypothermia happens when your body is losing heat quicker that it can produce it. Situations where you may be working in the wind, wetness or not properly dressed for the weather can speed up your heat loss quite quickly. Your normal body temperature is 37°C. Mild hypothermia kicks in when your core temp lowers to 36°C to 32°C. Moderate is 32°C to 30°C and severe is when your temperature drops way down to 30°C to 25.5°C. Come back tomorrow and we’ll go over the signs and treatment of Hypothermia.

You’ve inspected all your rigging equipment.  You’ve checked the load weight and centre of gravity.  You’ve checked the stamped SWL (you know what this is right?) on each piece of the rigging equipment and verified it is well within the load weight. You rig up the load and raise it a mere half an inch when an eye bolt shank shears off.  So…. what happened? Thankfully, nobody was hurt and the load was secured with no other damage, but why did the eye bolt fail? Eye bolts are essential devices used in many lifting operations; but eye bolt failures continue to cause incidents……especially when used for angular lifts.  According to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) an angular pull of 6 to 15 degrees from in-line can reduce the working load of an eyebolt to 55 percent. WAIT, WHAT….55%, that’s almost half! For a full report on an eye bolt incident recently posted, visit @Energysafetycan on Twitter.  And, to gain a better understanding of using eye bolts safely in rigging operations, visit Alberta BC Safety’s Youtube channel or click the bio for a short video.

Nothing tells your neighbors that you are the merriest of all like an outdoor display of Christmas lights similar to Clark Griswold himself. Whether you’re hanging one simple string of lights or a massive array so bright that it can be seen from Mars… You need to do it safely. Here’s a few tips to help you keep up with the Joneses this holiday season, without injuries or fires.

Before you even begin, check all your lights. Make sure the cords are in good condition (no frays or wires exposed), change out any dead bulbs (be sure to use the same wattage),  make sure that they are rated for outdoor use and have fused plugs (this protects against sparks). Once you are confident your lights are safe, make a plan.

Try and avoid using a million extension cords plugged into a power box on one socket. This will end badly. Anything from a fire to having to reset your breaker every time your microwave goes off. If possible, plug each strand into its own socket. I know in most cases this is not going to be possible. Check your fuse box to see what each plugin can handle and use a surge protector. A rule of thumb if you have to use extension cords is no more than 3 strings of lights per extension cord. Most houses will have a ground fault circuit interrupter outlet (GFCI) outside, double check that you’re plugging into one of them, if not… get one installed by a professional electrician. Occasionally check your extension cords for overheating. Always remember to keep your lights off while you’re sleeping and not home, just in case. Come back tomorrow and we’ll finish going over light safety.