Electrical Accidents Prevention Tips

Electrical accidents have caused over 30,000 injuries to construction workers in the past decade.  General contractors rely on skilled electrical professionals to perform significant tasks. If electricity and electrical products are not used or maintained they can pose serious risks. Electrical hazards are not just limited to electrocution. They include burns and health problems related to shocks.

OSHA maintains statistics regarding electrical fatalities and injuries. The latest electrical related statistics are as follows:

• Electrical Hazards cause more than 300 deaths and 4000 injuries in the workplace each year.

• Electrical accidents rank 6th among all causes of work related deaths in the US.

• Electrical accidents on the job cause an average of 13 days away from work and nearly one fatality every day.

• Over the past decade, 46,000 workers were injured from on the job electrical hazards.

• During the workday, a worker is severely hurt every 30 minutes from electricity to the point time off from the job is required.

OSHA stresses that most electrical incidents can be prevented by practicing proper safeguards.

Electrical Accidents Can Be Prevented With Proper Training

Construction professionals can access the Electrical Safety Foundation International’s website at www.esfi.org in order to receive information about electrical safety and hazards. Website users can browse materials regarding standards and best practices, industry codes and regulations as well as injury and fatality statistics. OSHA publishes downloadable white papers and directives regarding Electrical safety.

Workers should also view the National Electrical Contractor Association’s (NECA) site at www.necanet.org. Information related to legislation, industry topics, publications, and meetings/events can be easily obtained from this extremely beneficial website.

You may review all the various regulations, acts and rules that are currently in effect by visiting OSHA’s page at https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/electrical/standards.html. This web page highlights:

• OSHA standards
• Regulatory Actions (considerations being taken with regard to OSHA standards
• Federal Registers (rules, proposed rules, and notices that are being considered in Congress and other bodies)
• Directives (instructions for OSHA agents and  officers)
• Standard interpretations (Government official letters of interpretation of the standards)