Clutter: Keep the workplace tidy and walkways clear. Make sure equipment, tools, supplies, and materials that are not currently in use are stored appropriately away from work areas and walkways.

Trash: Remove trash (paper, food, packaging, etc.) from work areas and walkways; place trash bins strategically where needed and empty them regularly.

Fatal accident caused by clutter

Putting equipment away and keeping work areas clear of clutter can help save lives.

According to a MSHA report of a 2006 accident at a Tennessee limestone mine facility, a worker was killed as a result of tripping over equipment left in a work area. The employee had been with the company for more than seven years and had recently received required training. While he was gathering wash-down hoses to wash material out from under the railroad scales, he tripped over hoses that were lying on the ground and twisted together, creating a trip hazard. Subsequently, he was run over by a front-end loader that was moving railcars in the area.

According to MSHA, the accident occurred because the wash out area was not being kept clean and orderly. The MSHA report states that “[m]anagement failed to require that hoses were removed from the travelways after they had been used. Hose reels, hooks, or storage areas had not been provided to eliminate tripping hazards.”

Slips, trips, and falls can be expensive, disruptive, painful, and even fatal. Good housekeeping is a smart first precaution.

Information contained in this article was provided through the MSHA-NSSGA Alliance and was written cooperatively by members of both the aggregates industry and the regulatory agency.