Fires & Explosions
Fires and explosion workplace accidents can be caused by a multitude of risk factors, some of them include improper fitting of pipes, faulty gasworks or exposed flames. In the unfortunate event that a fire or explosion was to happen some of the injuries that could occur are of course burns and scolds but also damage to the lungs from inhalation of smoke or damaging chemicals. Explosions and fires account for 2.7% of all workplace accidents and although that percentage could be seen as minor, they also account for the highest casualty rate of all workplace accidents.
Prevention Techniques✅
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Educate your workforce an understanding of the risks surrounding the potential hazard.
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Ensure all your workforce wear personal protective equipment (PPE) at all times.
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Communicate an efficient evacuation plan so those at risk can be brought out of the situation as soon as possible.
Slips and Trips
Slips and trips are the most common incident to happen in the workplace mainly due to the fact there are a trip and slip hazards in every work environment whether it be classrooms, factories or offices. Hazards can be created from loose mats, poor flooring, wet patches or a general lack of housekeeping. The most common types of injuries directly inflicted from slips and trips are head and back injuries, broken bones, cuts and lacerations and pulled muscles.
Prevention Techniques✅
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Cleaning during non-working hours to ensure floors aren’t left slippery and to move or remove potential trip hazards.
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Look to invest in more adequate flooring for instance: anti-slip flooring or carpets instead of wood or tile. If the flooring is damaged or loose this could also be a potential risk factor.
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Make sure the lighting is adequate too, paths and stairways should be well lit.
Transportation and Vehicle-Related Accidents
If you work around vehicles and large trucks or HGVs then there’s a risk of vehicle-related workplace accidents. These can include being struck by a moving vehicle, being struck by objects falling from a vehicle, becoming crushed or stuck between or underneath a vehicle and even falling from the vehicle itself. These types of accidents are the most common in the agricultural or warehousing industries and because of the nature of the incidents are more often than not critical and even fatal.
Prevention Techniques✅
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Educate workers and drivers on safety precautions to take whilst driving or walking in highly populated areas.
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Ensure your workplace layout is the safest it can be, ensuring a clear separation between pedestrians and vehicles.
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Make sure warning signs of directions, speed limits and safety procedures are clear and visible
Muscle or Repetitive Stress Injuries
These sorts of injuries can be deemed less important and therefore end up becoming overlooked, this is wrong. Muscle disorders are the most costly work injuries. Complaints of bad backache can costs employers an approximate £5.9 billion a year and be a direct cause of up to 100 million lost workdays! The sorts of injuries that one could occur are as follows: back injuries (could result in slipped disks which are regular life-changing), strains and pulls and also hand or finger injuries. These injuries can occur from lots of things, some of these include improper lifting of heavy objects and also trying to manually lift too heavy items, no taking regular breaks to allow the body to rest and rejuvenate and even consistent typing and using your mouse can result in injuries to the hands and fingers.
Prevention Techniques✅
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Take regular breaks to allow the body to rest and rejuvenate.
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Ensure you and your workforce and told the correct and proper way to lift heavy objects and weight limits.
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Make sure you take your time, don’t rush yourself and put yourself in danger.
Being Caught or Struck By Moving Machinery
Heavy or Light Machinery that is not efficiently guarded or protected can be a serious safety hazard. In the unfortunate event that a body part gets caught by exposed moving parts, the results can often be detrimental. Some horrific injuries you could incur include crushed limbs, severed body parts, blindness, blindness and even death.
Prevention Techniques✅
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Make sure to double-check every machine part that may incur an injury is safeguarded and protected.
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Ensure you and your staff have the proper training when operating machinery.
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Purchase safety equipment relevant to the machinery and make sure it is not faulty and therefore unsuitable for use.