[Ben M.]

After getting zapped 3 times over the last 10 years I've pretty much had it and stand back these days and let the linemen and mechanics do the actual physical work on the high voltage\current lines. While I miss working with my hands on a daily basis at the same time I'm fortunate I'm still alive and have all digits. Every time I've had an accident or near miss it was because I was either tired or had done it "a million times" and was in a hurry. I've seen people cooked and it's not cool. Sadly things like this are a reminder to those who remain that we have to be diligent and always on the lookout for safety and accident avoidance.

[mechanickeith]

Originally Posted by 72projectbird

Did he get caught up in a lathe? If so that's gotta be up there with one of the worst ways to go.

Lathe?? Guess you could call it that. Much bigger with no tail stock.

[geeteeohguy]

Terrible news. I have (had) a friend and co worker who had recently retired pass away this past October. He was on a ladder in his garage and fell. He hit his head really hard, made it inside and laid down on the couch. When his wife got home a short while later, he was in a vegetative state. After a month in the hospice as a vegetable, he passed away. Major brain injuries. It isn't clear how he fell, but it is suspected he was out of the 'safety triangle' and his center of gravity was too high on the ladder. Just two weeks ago, another friend of mine had his ladder break when he was on it, and while he managed to land upright, he fractured his spine from the compression. Be careful, everybody!! We ALL tend to get comfortable with tools, machinery, and equipment, but we need to slow down and be fully aware of what we are doing. One simple 2 second short cut can be a game -changer or a game- ender.

[68GTOSCA]

Gentlemen:

I am project manager for a heavy civil construction company.
We continuously work to decrease the number of these type of injuries. But a
number occur each year.

Most injuries can be designed or engineered out of the process.
The one element cannot be engineered completely out is the human factor.
It takes only one mistake or lack of judgement to forever impact your
life and your ability to work.

Bad Incident - the children and his wife lifes will be forever changed for the
worst.

When he left the house that morning - He would have never dreamed he would not be coming back.

Sean

[72projectbird]

Originally Posted by mechanickeith

Lathe?? Guess you could call it that. Much bigger with no tail stock.

Jeez

I've seen lathe accidents, and those images are burned into my head.

[carcrazy]

What an unfortunate accident with such of an impact on his friends and family. Many of us work in dangerous environments and things can change in an instant! Getting comfortable can get you killed.

[02Hawk]

that is sad......tough on his family. Up here in the Canadian oil patch....hoodies are not allowed on any job site...period. Wear a hoodie you go home

[Will]

I'm a commercial electrician. Safety is *HUGE* in our trade. Weekly safety meetings, "no hot work" rules, etc. etc. Of course, sometimes you have to do hot work - a datacenter isn't going to shut down just so you can install a breaker into a panel, but when we do that kind of work it's suited up in the appropriate protective gear.

Still doesn't prevent accidents and fatalities. When I was in the apprenticeship one of the apprentices got stuck between a conduit that was live due to a shorted wire and a beam up in a ceiling space. Only 120V but it killed her.

I've had a couple minor incidents due to improperly wired fixtures - have burned holes through my wire cutters because I relied on a switch that was on the neutral rather than the hot. Another time I turned a breaker off to a 277V lighting circuit but didn't lock it out and someone came along behind me and turned it back on. Good lessons learned and now I don't work on a circuit unless it's locked out at the panel.

[elefantrider]

Sad story that happens all too frequently. Manufacturing accidents are usually a result of a chain of events. No enforced dress code/or required workplace-supplied uniform for operators of heavy machinery. No defined operator area, proximity sensors, and/or safety cut-off switch within reach. Sad.

[Mr6x]

It happened at my plant about 14 years ago on my shift. I remember talking to this guy and 30 minutes later he was dead from asphyxiation. You never forget. He was caught in a machine, his death probably a result of poor training and inexperience. It's also possible that another person may have unknowingly de-energized the equipment. Totally preventable.

[The Boss]

When working with machines you need to have your head in the game and be focused on what you are doing. I'm all for having fun on the job but when the switch gets turned on and (in my case) that blade starts spinning - you had better be focused on it 100%! If you are thinking about what's going on with your wife & kids, what you're going to get for lunch, what you're going to do with the car, or when you can get a drink - you need to shut it off and walk away.

I'm a firm believer in signs and you usually get one or two ahead of time if you are paying attention. You need to respect the signs and either step up or walk away - otherwise there will be consequences!

I've sent guys home before, or called the day because things weren't going well - just have to do it sometimes!

[beemergary]

Been in a tornado(no control over). Hit by lightning and hurt at work two times all POOR JUDGEMENT. Another time was a freak accident that still won't happen again. Putting eavestroughs on during storm was the lightning episode. People don't realize just because you shut something off there's still Stored Energy (air- hydraulic-springs) that can get you. I could go on and on in my 64 yrs. Now I watch my grandkids like a hawk.

[SRR]

Caught my son under his car once with only a floor jack...pulled him out by the ankles and he got a world class butt chewing! He said wow! I never saw you so mad before! Ya think!

[2002Z4CSS]

That is terrible.

[67GTONUT]

Ugh..... Cannot even imagine....

RIP and prayers for the family to get by this....

[pugslyx234]

Yep a kid here was under his car just a jack when it fell on him, his sister came into the garage to find him. Sad, his sister is my daughters friend.

[marks73ta]

Another warning to people who work with multiple energized equipment. You must trace and lock out all energy sources, steam, air, hydraulic etc. Especially automatically energized equipment. You may turn off elecritcity to an item that will stop a motor, but if steam is injected or hydraulic pressure activates a press etc. The result can be the same. So many people have been hurt not realizing there are many ways to energize something.

Mark

[storminnorman]

years back while stationed in Thailand, loaded O-1 Bird dogs with willypete rockets. they were terrible in the morning for static electricity. working end of runway always stood as far away as possible when pulling safetypins. situation awareness and risk assessment learned early in life

[bird72]

Years back I was out on one of my Telco jobs overseeing the build. NW Arizona, in a solid rock section. We had to dig in multi conduits and we were just beyond an overpass that had concrete wing walls that we used as shields while we dynamited beyond. The old explosives guy, an old gold miner, (Seth) looked at me and said real slow "you might want to move". We were behind these wing walls and dumb me had my head right in front of a bank of 4 precast conduit built into the wing wall when it was built. In those 4" pipes were the torque down metal center, big rubber edge seal type duct plugs. I said "oh yeah" and moved over ten feet. When we lit the charges off, they had a bit more effect than we thought, so they really worked. Blew all four of those duct plugs (5 pounds ? ea) blew them all about 100 feet behind us. Would have taken my head off. Thanks Seth!

[gtohurstjudge]

As I've gotten older and noticed my sense of balance isn't what it once was, I
won't climb up on a ladder anymore. Not worth the risk in my opinion. Anything needs done requiring a ladder I pay a young guy to do it. A good friend of mine that is my age fell out
of a ladder cutting a tree limb a couple of months ago and shattered his left lower leg and ankle.