Incident alert
LOCATION:
LIME & SLAG PLANTS
ACTIVITY:
ACCESS & EGRESS & WORKING AT HEIGHT
DATE ISSUED:
24/02/2015 10:29:32
TITLE
MEWP Near Miss
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
United Kingdom
ACCIDENT / INCIDENT DETAILS
Access was required to the 27.8 metre level on the outside of the kiln, adjacent to the kiln skip hoist steel structure using a mobile elevated work platform (MEWP).
A ZX-135/70 Articulating Boom MEWP was operated by a sub-contractor who had received training in these types of machines. He was accompanied in the platform by a scaffolding sub-contractor; the purpose of the task was to view the area where a scaffold access platform was required. Both personnel were wearing fall protection PPE. The operator work restraint, the scaffolder fall arrest.
The operator took the machine up to the working area (27metres), once the platform had reached the required height, he took his hands off the controls and the foot pedal; at this point the boom and basket continued to move. He hit the emergency stop and it still continued to move eventually becoming wedged between the kiln sheeting and skip hoist structure, the guardrails of the platform as result of it becoming snagged on the structure was damaged.
A third person took over the ground controls, managed to free the machine of the structure and manoeuvred the machine back to ground level. The MEWP was quarantined and the suppliers were contacted.
Currently the MEWP is at the supplier’s workshop being stripped down.
ACCIDENT / INCIDENT IMAGES
Click image to enlarge
MEWP
LEARNING POINTS / ACTIONS TAKEN
The root causation of the incident is not yet known and the engineers report is awaited.
• Although not linked to the root cause of the near miss; the post incident review did find that the risk assessment process with regard to work at height PPE was inconsistent.
- The Health & Safety Executive General Information Sheet (GIS6), on The Selection, Management and Use of MEWPs HSE GIS6 (http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/geis6.pdf) states that “the preferred option is to stop the person from falling by using a work restraint system, i.e. prevent a fall from the platform basket”.
- In future, it shall be mandatory that all operatives of MEWPS shall wear a work restraint harness, connected to an anchor point on the MEWP basket.
• Always insist on a familiarisation of the machine controls etc. include also in the familiarisation, another person who is able to operate the machine, using ground controls for rescue.
• Ensure that the risk assessment always includes an emergency and rescue procedure.
LEARNING POINTS / ACTIONS IMAGES
Click image to enlarge
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