I am a little late getting this one together, but without further ado here is what I have found interesting in safety news this week.

In the “Lockout is for everyone” category

A bowling alley was cited by OSHA after a fatality where a mechanic was caught in a pin setter mechanism. The premise of safety guarding from equipment is simple. Either it has to be guarded, or it has to be locked out. There are very few exceptions from an OSHA standpoint, and they are hard to prove. Even with work that sounds simple, it is very important that the equipment is guarded or securely turned off. Even at home, there are times where it is important to make sure the item is unplugged or that you maintain exclusive control

In the “scaffold” category

A scaffold collapse in North Carolina resulted in multiple fatalities. It is still not exactly known of what caused the collapse. It is a good reminded of how important competent scaffold builders are and inspections of the scaffolding. It will be interesting to see what comes from the investigation

In the “get the job done” category.

A roofer had an electrocution fatality and following the even sent another guy back to the same site under the same conditions to finish the job. Sadly, this happens more than it should. I remember a few years ago sitting in the TOSHA annual review of state fatalities. In their PowerPoint deck was a photo of roofers on the job. The previous day one of the roofers fell off the roof and was killed. The next day when the compliance officer showed up, the exact same work was going on with no additional safe guards. It truly makes me shake my head and wonder “what were they thinking?”

In the “makes me wonder about humanity” category

Wal-Mart has chosen to end their appeal of the 2008 Black Friday trampling death. I remember when this happened and wondered what kind of cheap electronics is worth a mob mentality tramping someone to death. How could people just keep charging into the store and not see they were killing the guy who opened the door. In Wal-Mart’s defense, I am sure they did not see that as a potential risk. I have in years following the incident an increased awareness of employee safety around Black Friday.

In “that’s interesting” news

A database of state OSHA laws has been compiled. It is an interesting read.