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SHI Cable Installer Fall from Scaffolding (28-Sep-05)
This incident occurred in the Samsung Heavy Industry (SHI) shipyard in Geoje, So. Korea, where the Lunskoye-A topsides are being constructed. The project is in the final stages of construction and mechanical completion prior to handover to commissioning.

As part of the final electrical work, heat tracing cable is being installed. An E&I subcontractor was performing final cable installation and termination in the Mud Pump Room on deck UD22. A worker had completed tie-wrapping a heat tracing cable on a cable rack 2.9 m. above a steel deck. While egressing towards a temporary installed vertical ladder to take a break he fell to the steel deck. He suffered fractures of left skull and right thumb.

Emergency response was very good. Shipyard emergency response personnel arrived within 10 minutes of the incident, stabilized the worker, and fitted a neck brace. The worker was transferred to local hospital by ambulance with the SHI clinic doctor and nurse and given a CAT scan and X-rays. The worker was then transferred to Masan Samsung Hospital by helicopter for detailed examination. The worker was moved from critical care to general care on 4th Oct. He is expected to remain in the hospital for a month and should make a full recovery.

-Supervisor/foreman training is critical to get their ownership of worker and worksite safety.
-Hazard identification is still weak at both the worker and supervisor/foreman level.
Cable trays often appear as ideal work platforms; however, they are not necessarily designed to support a worker. Stainless steel material also makes them more slippery than wood or normal steel surfaces.

Safe and reasonably convenient access to the work location must be provided to prevent worker from taking the ¿easy way down¿ that might not be as safe.

Hazard recognition by both the worker and his supervisor(s) is critical and should include not just the work location but access/egress routes.

Although not deemed to be an immediate cause of the incident, SHI equipment and working at height procedures, which meet Korean regulations, are not in line with best practices.


Category:Safety AlertsDocument Type:Safety
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