1. Hands and Fingers !!! No. 12 What happened ?
Safety Alert
No. 12
Sept 1999
Hands and Fingers !!!
What happened ?
7 of the 18 LTI’s to date this year have resulted in injuries to hands and fingers.
…. The home made locking pin of the impact wrench made a very deep cut in the palm of his left hand damaging the nerve and tendon of the middle finger.
…. His left hand fingers were caught between pulley and belt. The ring finger was amputated, the little finger was crushed.
…. The valve slipped from the Derrickman’s hands and caught the Roustabout’s hand as he tried to support it. His hand was permanently damaged.
…. While fixing a hose clamp his middle finger tip was trapped by the quick-close handle. The tip of his finger was broken.
…. A PDO trainee, trapped the tip of his index finger when reinstalling a turbine enclosure panel. His finger was crushed and broken.
…. He was open/close testing a valve he had just repaired. He placed his finger inside the valve and closed it. The tip of his middle finger was almost cut off.
…. They were securing the load using a chain binder. The helper trapped his finger in between the chain and the lever. His finger tip was crushed.
Why did these accidents happen ?
Many reasons played a role. Here are some of the main ones:
Not knowing or not following procedures and rules
Not wearing PPE (gloves)
Not concentrating on what one is doing (mental fatigue?)
Careless behavior (not thinking, taking a shortcut, I know better)
Lack of safety awareness and experience
What can you learn from these accidents ?
Injury to hands or fingers seem small and trivial but they can have an effect over
the rest of a life. Here are some tips that will help to avoid injury to you or your team:
First think about what you are going to do and how you will do it
Ask yourself: What possible hazards are there? What if something goes wrong?
Protect yourself against the hazards you have identified: control them!
Know and follow the safety procedures and rules that apply to this work
Wear the correct PPE, it is there for a reason
Do the job without rushing
================================================================= Note for Supervisors: Make your staff understand this message !!!