Causes of Accidents
Determine main causes of accidents/incidents
HSE consider that 4/5 of all accidents due to failures in management system..Analyse further...HSE links?
Outline main causes of system failures: Lack of procedures.Look at these examples of agricultural incidents. Identify similar causes and list them
The purpose of the investigation is to see of there are improvements which can be implemented.
These may be to purchasing (Unit 2 LO7 ), systems of work, to procedures, training for people.
Set up for Unit 2 LO 1
Analyse cause of an accident/incident
When there has been an accident or incident, the prime source of
information is from witnesses. However they are not legally obliged to
say anything - other than to HSE inspectors. Often when collecting
information, you may hear that the evidence is collected for the sake
of determining cause - rather than blame. This arises from the fact
that there may be a court case later that may try to determine whether
or not there has been negligence - usually of the employer involved. (What is "negligence"?).
Under Safety Reps Regs, an employer can refuse to release information collected after an accident as they are entitled to the defense that the evidence was collected as part of their court case. However, they can not use that defense if they have previously stated it was collected to determine 'cause rather than blame'.
Who to communicate results to ..Unit 2 LO 4
Cause of Accident Case Study
Two farm workers were killed, whilst they were using a tractor mounted hydraulically driven machine used for winding up long lengths of rope. They became entangled between the rope and a rotating shaft. The machine was being used to wind up long lengths of rope used to secure polythene unto the metal hoops of the polytunnels, which protect the fruits grown on the farm. The standard practice was for one employee to stand about 6m behind the winding machine feeding the rope whilst the other stayed in the stationary tractor cab operating the controls. It is not known why the tractor driver left the cab without first turning off the machine. The bodies of both workers were found some hours after the accident.
The investigation concluded that the deceased men were using a tractor-mounted fleece winder machine, which was not suitable for rope winding as, due to its design, it had a significant rundown time after it was switched off and it did not have an automatic cut off and braking system in the event of entanglement.
The employees, were not made aware of the dangers posed by the task and had not been adequately trained. This resulted in a tragic and preventable accident, which resulted in the loss of two young lives.
What were the main causes of this tragic accident? Training? Carelessness. Supervision? Safe Systems? Risk Assessment?
Write down what you consider are the causes of this accident. Write a short explanation of your reasons in your Portfolio at U1 LO3. If you have ever been involved in an accident, draw on your experience.
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LANTRA Awards: Controlling Risks in Agriculture Level 3