A firefighter in Kentucky is electrocuted after contacting overhead power line, Kentucky. A factory manager dies after bypassing lockout-tagout. A landscaper in Massachusetts working from a raised portable work platform is electrocuted when a pole saw contacts an overhead power line.
When someone suffers an electrical shock, they actually are – at that moment – part of an electrical circuit. The severity of the injuries they sustain depends on three primary factors: the amount of current flowing through the body (measured in amperes); the path of the current through the body and the length of time the body is in the circuit.
To commemorate National Electrical Safety Month , the Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) spearheads an annual campaign to educate key audiences about the steps that can be taken in order to reduce the number of electrically-related fires, fatalities, injuries, and property loss.
Just five occupational groups account for 80 percent of all fatal electrical accidents, according to Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI). They are:
An arc flash explosion at the Idaho National Laboratory last year has earned a contractor a $60,000 fine from federal regulators. Battelle Energy Alliance (BEA) has also been ordered to make safety improvements.
Recent OSHA citations for serious health and safety violations at Fuyao Glass in Moraine, Ohio were not sufficient for workers at the company, who have filed a complaint asking for a more thorough investigation into conditions at the plant.
An OSHA investigation launched at a Georgia furniture manufacturing facility after a worker lost part of a finger to a table saw revealed that his employer, Tritter Feefer Home Collection LLC, had removed the safety guards from the saw.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) developed NFPA 70E, Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace to help prevent injuries and fatalities associated with electrical shock and arc flash hazards.
May is National Electrical Safety Month and the Electrical Safety Foundation International (ESFI) is spearheading its annual effort to raise awareness of potential home electrical hazards and the importance of electrical safety.
