HAZWOPER Onsite safety video or dvd excerpt: On site safety operations present special hazards, and require careful planning and proper work practices. In this training program we want to review some of the key points for continuous site safety. The first key, is to use all available engineering controls to eliminate and reduce site accidents. Next safe work practices must be encouraged, and implemented to eliminated or reduce site accidents. And the use of personal protective equipment is particularly important when engineering controls and safe work practices are unavailable. For a better understanding of accidents and their causes, let's look at two words to describe a safety posture, or things you should do to prevent accidents. They are classified as offensive and defensive safety postures. Just as in any game, there's an offense, and a defense. In the safety business offense means you are aware of potential hazards. And you take the necessary steps to avoid exposure and an injury. You're following safety rules, regulations, and procedures. You're taking the offense to prevent accidents and injuries. Defensive means you are very aware of situation, and conditions that others may create. You're defending yourself from the actions of others. And this is accomplished by being aware of what's going on around you. Preventing accidents and injuries is a result of recognizing and eliminating unsafe conditions and acts. An unsafe condition can also be described as a physical hazard. It could be a wet floor, broken equipment, or other hazards. An unsafe act is something an individual does, or fails to do. Such as wearing eye protection when it's required, or wearing your hardhat backwards. It could be wearing a respirator that doesn't fit. Most accidents, and injuries are a result of unsafe acts, in fact about 85-98% of all injuries are caused as a result of an unsafe act. If you trip and fall, it may be you tripped on the bottom of the door step, but the cause of the accident wasn't the door or the step, it was because that person wasn't paying attention to where he was walking, we call this a duel cause of an accident. The door which could be classified as a physical hazard, and the unsafe act of the person, by not watching where he was walking. At waste sites, and during emergency response we can classify two types of hazards, physical and chemical.
