Mining Health & Safety Open Forum

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  • 1.  Safety Share - Sad Ending

    Posted 07-15-2016 06:38 PM

    Never pull over on the side of a busy road!

    This sad but true story happened recently: a woman had pulled over to help another driver recover a bicycle from their road that had fallen off his rack. After getting back in her car she was rear-ended by a young man who was reportedly driving under the influence. She was killed.

    Although friendly help may be the morally right thing to do, you should never stop on a highway unless you can safely pull into the clear, for example at a designated parking area. Even cops pulling drivers over get hit from behind regularly despite having warning lights on.  Let the professionals clear foreign objects and debris off the road - this is nobody else's business. And tie down any cargo securely so that you don't lose it.

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    Dr. Jurgen Brune, P.E., RM
    Research Professor
    Colorado School of Mines
    Golden CO United States
    (303) 273-3704
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  • 2.  RE: Safety Share - Sad Ending

    Posted 07-15-2016 09:07 PM

    This is a good share and if we reflect it into the mining space we all work within it can be seen regularly unfortunately in the hero syndrome where workers and more often than not supervisors put themselves in the line of fire to help other solve a problem in the workplace.  This leads them to be in areas that are not protected by barriers or segregation from mobile equipment and exposed to stored energies that cannot always be recognized.  Always stop and think before acting, complete a mental, or even better, written risk assessment before approaching any work and in particular abnormal situations to ensure controls are good enough to prevent injuries to those involved and those good enough to help out.  

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    Michael Routledge
    RUT LLC
    Park City UT United States
    (801)556-3745