FOCUS FOUR PART 1: Caught in Between

Saturday, March 02, 2024

Injury records demonstrate the four hazards that cause the most injuries to construction workers. OSHA has designated these as the FOCUS FOUR and would like all construction workers to work together to make all of us aware of them and to mitigate them. We all can go home safe every day if watch out for ourselves and we watch out for those around us. Remember to always be aware of your surroundings. Use what you have been trained to do. 30-30-30. Every thirty minutes, take 30 seconds to look around you in at a least a 30-yard radius and look for hazards and what is happening around you. It is easy to get tunnel vision on what you are doing and lose track of what is happening around you. The FOCUS FOUR are FALLS, CAUGHT-IN-BETWEEN, STRUCK BY and ELECTROCUTION. Each week we will cover one of the FOCUS FOUR and I encourage you to talk about all these hazards with your co-workers, you peers, your crew members and your management. The more we talk about them, the more discussions we have, the more aware we are all and the better chance we all have of going home safe. Make safety a real focus and part of the culture. Small things make a difference, don't have any meeting without discussing safety, don't start a day without discussing safety with the crew and doing a JHA, and don't assign or change a task without discussing safety. If every executive, director, manager, supervisor and employee did this daily, then everyone in the organization would be thinking about safety and focused on it. Being aware throughout the day is the biggest step we can take to get our people home safely every day.

CAUGHT IN BETWEEN

Each year, workers suffer approximately 125,000 caught-in/on/between (crush) injuries that occur when body parts get caught between two objects or entangled with machinery. These hazards are also referred to as "pinch points". The physical forces applied to a body part caught in a pinch point can vary and cause injuries ranging from bruises, cuts, amputated body parts and even death. In one incident that occurred, an employee was moving a pallet of materials by hand from the front of a truck bed to the rear so that another employee could use a forklift to pick up the pallet. While pulling the pallet to the rear, the employee’s hand was caught between the pallet and one of the forks of the forklift as it was moving forward, crushing the bones in his hand.

Here are some tips about the caught/crush hazards and pinch points specific to various tasks, tools, and equipment so you can take precautions.

- Look for possible pinch points before you start a task. Take the time to plan out your actions and decide on the necessary steps to work safely.

- Give your work your full attention. Don't joke around, daydream, or try to multi-task on the job—most accidents occur when workers are distracted. Read and follow warning signs posted on equipment. If you value all that your hands can do, THINK before you put them in a hazardous spot.

- Sometimes, all it takes to avoid injury is a little communication, as in the case of the incident that occurred above. If you are working with someone to move a pallet or piece of equipment or pick up a load, be sure you know where they are and what they are doing and that they know the same for you.

- Wear the appropriate, well-fitting gloves for your job. Dress appropriately for work with pants and shirt sleeves that are not too long or too loose. Shirts should be fitted or tucked in.

- Machinery can pose a hazard with moving parts, gears, rollers and rotating shafts.

- Never reach into or step across moving equipment.

- Do not wear any kind of jewelry, especially dangling pieces such as neck chains or bracelets, around moving equipment. There's not only a danger of its being caught by moving parts, but also of electrocution.

- Tie back long hair and tuck braids and ponytails behind you or into your clothing. But remember that stuffing long hair under your hard hat may not be good enough. It can work free and become entangled in equipment.

- Properly maintain and always use the machine and tool guards provided with your equipment—they act as a barrier between the moving parts and your body.

- Don't reach around, under or through a guard, and always report missing or broken barriers to your supervisor. Always replace machine guards if they have been removed for adjustment or maintenance of the equipment. Report all moving parts that are exposed and pose a danger.

- Turn equipment off and use lockout/tagout procedures before adjusting, clearing a jam, repairing or servicing equipment.

- Good housekeeping is a must. Imagine tripping over something you've left on the floor and rushing headlong into disaster.

These are just some of the things we can do to be safe. Let's all do our part. Let's continue to get the job done efficiently, with quality and SAFELY.