Worker Struck by Excavator Bucket

In a recent incident that occured at night, a worker was killed after being struck by an excavator bucket.. The excavator was backfilling quarry dust to the voids at the sides of a newly constructed box culvert wall. The worker was standing near the piles of quarry dust when the bucket struck him. He passed away in hospital a few days later.

Photograph was taken after the piles of quarry dust had been removed

Recommendations*:

Stakeholders involved in similar work situations can undertake control measures such as the following to prevent recurrence:

1. During night work, workers should don personal protective equipment that increases visibility, such as reflective tape and vests, that can help improve their safety at work.

2. Prior to the start of any work, conduct an adequate risk assessment to identify all hazards and the risks involved. Control measures and safe work procedures must be established and implemented.

3. It is recommended that works that involve heavy machinery be carried out during the day, where visibility is better. This would eliminate or mitigate hazards associated with night work, for instance, reduced visibility, machine operator impairment or inattention, fatigue, lack of adequate lighting etc.

4. Ensure adequate illumination is provided when carrying out work. For more details, refer to SS 531:2008 Code of Practice for Lighting of Work Places.

5. Establish detailed method statements and safe work procedures that are specific to the tasks. The safe work procedures must be communicated to and understood by the workers carrying out the work and adhered to. It is important to detail out separate safe work procedures for day and night work, due to the significant difference in environmental conditions.

6. All persons involved in the work must be adequately trained to be competent for the job, as well as be aware of the risks and the safety precautions required. Workers who were not involved in the work should not be allowed near areas where work is done using heavy machinery.

7. Supervise workers adequately to ensure assigned tasks are carried out in a safe manner. The responsibilities of supervisors include regular inspections to identify and manage hazards at the worksite. The supervisor should ensure that safe work procedures are adhered to.

For more information on Workplace Safety and Health, please refer to the following links below:

• Workplace Safety and Health Act (Chapter 354A), please click HERE
• Workplace Safety and Health (General Provisions) Regulations, please click HERE
• Workplace Safety and Health (Risk Management) Regulations, please click HERE
• Workplace Safety and Health (Construction) Regulations, please click HERE
• Code of Practice on WSH Risk Management, please click HERE
• CP 18 : 1992 Code of Practice for Earthworks, available from SPRING Singapore
• SS 531: 2008 Code of Practice for Lighting of Work Places, available from SPRING Singapore
• SS 562 : 2010 on Code of Practice for Safety in Trenches, Pits and Other Excavated Areas, available from SPRING Singapore

*Pls note the recommendations are not exhaustive.

Original Source: Received from WSH Council via e-mail.

Unsafe Conditions - Fall From Height Hazards

Single plank work platform

Floor opening not covered

Inappropriate material used to cover the floor opening 

Floor opening not covered

Bangladeshi worker killed after concrete slab falls on him

Source: AsiaOne Sunday, Mar 11, 2012

A Bangladeshi worker was killed at a Downtown MRT Line construction site near Botanic Gardens yesterday morning after a concrete slab fell on him.

The Straits Times reported that 35-year-old Masud Al Mamun was operating an excavator deep in the ground when the slab fell on him at the construction site along Evans Road, off Bukit Timah Road.

Singapore Civil Defence Force (SCDF) rescuers had to use a breaking tool kit to break a portion of the concrete slab. It took them nearly five hours to reach the man lying motionless on the ground.
A 10-tonne jack and two airbags were used to stabilise the concrete slab before they could remove Mr Masud Al Mamun. He was pronounced dead at about 9am.

According to the English daily, Mr Masud Al Mamun was with another worker at the lowest level of the site, three to four storeys below ground, when the accident happened. They had been tasked to remove the concrete slab, which later fell on Mr Mamun. The other worker had managed to move away in time as he saw soil crumbling from above. He was not injured.

FIRE AT IOC OIL DEPOT, JAIPUR, INDIA ON 29 OCT.-2009

How it start?

• Thefirebrokeoutwhenpetrolwasbeingtransferredfromthedepottoapipelineandsoongotoutofcontrol.Aleakinthepipelineissuspectedtohavecausedtheblaze.InitialTimeline:29October-2009,Thursday(IST)
• 6.45PM: A leakage was detected in IOC depot in Jaipur.  For next 40 minutes, engineers tried to repair it.
• 7:30PM: The first container exploded, causing effect of equivalent to a mild quake measuring 2.3 on the Richter scale.
• 8:00PM: The fire became uncontrollable. Immediately all 12 tanks catch fire! These were floating roof tanks... the fire started from some leakage in pipeline.. the initial blast might have damaged the vapour seals of the tank thereby starting leakage at rim of tank and then the fire..

AlargertragedywasavertedastheLPGcylindersremainedsafe.

For more details , click here



2 construction workers killed in separate accidents

One of the construction workers is a Chinese, the other a Bangladeshi

Published in The Straits Times on Mar 1, 2012

A policeman at the scene of yesterday's accident at Suites@East Coast. Mr Jaydub Kobiraz, 36, was hacking at the base of an exposed section of a 2m-long concrete pile when it collapsed and struck him on his head. In a separate accident in Fort Road yesterday, a 21m-tall crane toppled, killing a Chinese national. -- ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN

 

By Tham Yuen-C & Lee Xin En

 

Two construction workers were killed on Wednesday in separate worksite accidents.
The first, involving a 36-year-old Bangladeshi, happened at the Upper East Coast Road site for the upcoming Suites@East Coast condominium.
Mr Jaydub Kobiraz Nimoy Kobiraz was hacking at the base of an exposed section of a 2m-long concrete pile when it collapsed at about 9.30am and struck him on the back of his head, preliminary investigations by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) show.
Workers at the scene said that he fell forward, head first, and that his forehead was pierced by an iron rod, even though he was wearing a helmet. Two others who were working alongside him were unhurt.