Identifying Hazards

Good hazard scenarios describe:

• Where is it happening? [environment],
• Who or what is it happening to? [exposure],
• What precipitates the hazard? [trigger],
• The outcome that would occur should it happen [consequence], and
• Any other contributing factors.

What could go wrong?

• The worker’s hand could come into contact with a rotating object that ‘catches’ it and pulls it into the machine.

What are the consequences?

• The worker could have an injury to his fingers and could possibly even loose a hand.

How could it happen?

• The incident could happen as a result of the worker trying to clear a snag during operations or as part of a maintenance activity while the pulley is operating

• Obviously, this hazard scenario could not occur if the pulley is not rotating

What are other contributing factors?

• This hazard occurs very quickly.  It does not give the worker much opportunity to recover or prevent it once his hand comes into contact with the pulley

• This is an important factor, because it helps you determine the severity and likelihood of an accident when selecting appropriate hazard controls

 How likely is it that the hazard will occur?

• This determination requires some judgment.  If there have been ‘near-misses’ or actual cases, then the likelihood of a recurrence would be considered high

• If the pulley is exposed and easily accessible, that also is a consideration