Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
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1.. Disabling.injury.accidents
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2.. Nondisabling.injury.accidents.that.require.medical.treatment
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3.. Circumstances.that.have.contributed.to.acute.or.chronic.occupational.illness
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4.. Noninjury.property.damage.accidents.that.exceed.a.normally.expected.oper-
ating.cost
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5.. Near-accidents.with.a.potential.for.serious.injury.or.property.damage
AccIdent PreventIon
When.accidents.are.not.reported,.their.causes.usually.go.uncorrected..This.allows.
the.chance.for.the.same.accident.to.happen.again..Every.accident,.if.properly.investi-
gated,.serves.as.a.learning.experience.for.the.people.involved..However,.investiga-
tions.should.not.become.a.mechanical.routine..They.should.strive.to.establish.what.
happened,. why. it. happened,. and. what. must. be. done. to. prevent. a. recurrence.. An.
accident.investigation.must.be.conducted.to.learn.the.facts,.not.to.place.blame.
In.any.accident.investigation,.consider.the.aspect.of.multiple.causation..The.con-
tributing.factors.surrounding.an.accident,.as.well.as.the.unsafe.acts.and.unsafe.condi-
tions,.should.be.considered..If.only.the.unsafe.acts.and.conditions.are.considered.when.
investigating.an.accident,.little.will.be.accomplished.toward.any.accident.prevention.
effort.because.the.“root.causes”.still.remain..This.leaves.the.possibility.for.an.accident.
to.recur..The.“root.causes”.are.items.such.as.management.policies.and.decisions,.and.
the.personal.and.environmental.factors.that.could.prevent.accidents.when.corrected.
Accidents. are. usually. complex. and. are. the. result. of. multiple. causes.. A. detailed.
analysis. of. an. accident. will. normally. reveal. three. cause. levels:. basic,. indirect,. and.
direct..At.the.lowest.level,.an.accident.results.only.when.a.person.or.object.receives.
the. release. of. an. amount. of. energy. or. exposure. to. hazardous. material. that. cannot.
be. absorbed. safely.. This. energy. or. hazardous. material. is. the. direct . cause. of. the.
accident..The.second.causal.areas.are.usually.the.result.of.one.or.more.unsafe.acts.
or.unsafe.conditions,.or.both..Unsafe.acts.and.conditions.are.the. indirect .causes.or.
symptoms..In turn,.indirect.causes.are.usually.traceable.to.poor.management.policies.
and.decisions,.or.to.personal.or.environmental.factors..These.are.the. basic .causes.
Despite. their. complexity,. most. accidents. are. preventable. by. eliminating. one. or.
more. causes.. Accident. investigations. determine. not. only. what. happened,. but. also.
how. and. why.. The. information. gained. from. these. investigations. can. prevent. the.
recurrence. of. similar. or. perhaps. more. disastrous. accidents.. Accident. investiga-
tors.are.interested.in.each.event.as.well.as.in.the.sequence.of.events.that.led.to.the.
accident.. The. accident. type. is. also. important. to. the. investigator.. The. recurrence.
of.accidents.of.a.particular.type.or.those.with.common.causes.show.areas.needing.
special.accident.prevention.emphasis.
It.is.important.to.have.some.mechanism.in.place.to.investigate.accidents/incidents.
in.order.to.determine.the.basis.of.cause-and-effect.relationships..These.types.of.rela-
tionships.can.only.be.determined.when.you.actively.investigate.all.accidents.and.inci-
dents.that.result.in.injuries,.illnesses,.or.damage.to.property,.equipment,.or.machinery.
Accident.investigation.becomes.more.effective.when.all.levels.of.management—
particularly. top. management—take. a. personal. interest. in. controlling. accidents..
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