Incident alert
ACTIVITY:
MANUAL HANDLING AND STORAGE
TITLE
Quarry fitter suffers a likely hairline fracture to his foot
COUNTRY OF ORIGIN
United Kingdom
ACCIDENT / INCIDENT DETAILS
A quarry fitter suffered a severe injury to his foot when he was returning a mobile oil pump to the stores. Over time a finger shaped carrying handle had become detached (Photo 1), and the exposed shaft (Photo 2) coated in oil. It had become normal practice to slide the carrying handle back onto the pump whenever it had to be moved. On this occasion the pump, which weighed approximately 8kg, slid out of the carrying handle and fell.
Unfortunately, even though laced up ankle safety boots were being worn; it landed on the bridge of the fitter’s foot between his ankle and the edge of the steel toecap. An examination, and x-ray, at the local A&E department revealed a strong probability of a hairline fracture; consequently the fitter’s foot was encased in plaster.
ACCIDENT / INCIDENT IMAGES
Click image to enlarge
Showing the detached carry handle
LEARNING POINTS / ACTIONS TAKEN
Using defective equipment was the prime cause of this accident. Are all tools and equipment well maintained and kept in a safe condition? The UK Safety Essentials asks for us to “Use the right, well maintained, tools / equipment for the job. Never Make Do”.
The defective handle was not reported through the Defect Reporting System. Are all defects, no matter how small or minor, reported using the correct procedures.
By moving the pump with both pipes attached further aggravated the problem by making the pump far more difficult to carry and control. Are correct procedures followed to allow safe Manual Handling operations – even carrying a pump back to the stores
LEARNING POINTS / ACTIONS IMAGES
Go back to search critera