1. White Card Update: Construction Worker Hit by Falling
Glass
According to a report on Examiner.com.au a construction worker lies critical in hospital after
being hit by a sheet of falling glass outside a Hospital Construction site. The man was working
as a glazier when the incident occurred and the man had to be treated for severe lacerations.
He is still in a critical condition but has stabilised since yesterday.
The post goes on to state:
A CONSTRUCTION worker is in a critical condition after being crushed by a sheet of
glass outside the Launceston General Hospital yesterday.
The glazier was working on the hospital’s new integrated care centre in Frankland
Street when the glass fell on him.
Ambulance Tasmania received the call around 10am, and treated the man for severe
lacerations.
A hospital spokeswoman said he also suffered multiple fractures and internal injuries,
and was taken to the emergency department in a serious condition.
By yesterday afternoon his condition had deteriorated, and he was listed as critical but
stable.
The hospital’s occupational health and safety officers attended but work continued at
the construction site, which is managed by Fairbrother. The company’s general
manager Peter Killick said he could not comment on the accident because the worker
was a subcontractor from an interstate firm.
Workplace Standards, which is investigating the incident, said the man was employed by
Hi Tech Glazing.
http://www.examiner.com.au/news/local/news/general/lgh-worker-critical-as-glass-plung
es/2262249.aspx
The worker in this incident is lucky to alive, considering the dangerous nature of glass and the
seriousness of the lacerations he received. Unfortunately another worker this year was not as
lucky. Earlier this year a teenage worker was killed by a falling excavator bucket on an
Australian construction site in Sydney. The incident was made more sad by the fact that the
worker was a young apprentice at the beginning of his life when it was cut short by safety
breaches on the site.
These two occurrences although tragic highlight the need for stricter adherence to safety
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2. measures on site. Falling objects present a very real danger to construction workers and need
to be addressed on every construction work site. All employees need to take the necessary
precautions to avoid objects falling and hitting other people on site and adjoining areas, such as
dwellings, yards, or roads beside the construction site.
Possible falling hazards are objects such as tools and materials, debris and other equipment
that has the potential to fall from a workstation or platform or into a trench and potentially injure
a worker or passer-by.
Both employers and employees have a responsibility to assess the risk of objects falling and
injuring workers. Controls must be used to reduce these risks. Safety controls need to be in
accordance with regulation standards.
Possible measures that can be undertaken to minimise the risk of injury from falling objects
include :
Barricade or hoarding at least 900mm high less than or equal to 15 degrees,
hoarding at least 1800mm high greater than 15 degrees and less than or equal to 30
degrees,
Another possible solution may be using fully sheeted hoarding at least 1800mm high
greater than 30 degrees.
If the angle is equal to or more than 75 degrees and not demolition work, erecting work
or dismantling formwork you should erect a gantry, close the adjoining area, ?erect a
catch platform with vertical sheeting or perimeter screening.
For demolition work or work to erect or dismantle formwork, the principal contractor must
close the adjoining area, or screening containment can be erected on the perimeter.
As an employee there are certain basic steps that can be followed to minimise the risk of injury
from falling hazards. Some of the basic guidelines to follow are:
Use fences and barricades to separate the hazard from other workers and people
Use the appropriate signs to warn of the danger of falling objects
Install safety nets where necessary to catch falling objects or debris
Keep tools in the appropriate place or toolbox and not lying around the ground
Ensure materials are properly secured when moving or lifting
While it may be too late for the workers injured in these instances adherence to safety planning
and regulation can assure that other workers on construction sites avoid the same fate.
Posted by Steven Asnicar
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3. http://www.whitecardonline.com.au/blog/my-category/white-card-update-construction-worker-hit-
by-falling-glass/
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