Faults Cited After A 2008 Nuclear Carrier Fire Exacerbated The Bonhomme Richard Conflagration
As the USS Bonhomme Richard fire—and as at least 4 other major pier-side fires have demonstrated since a shipyard arsonist torched the attack submarine USS Miami (SSN-755) in 2012—the pier is a dangerous place for any naval vessel. Earlier in the month, as the wrecked amphibious assault ship still smoldered, the Navy’s waterfront chronic safety culture shortcomings were re-emphasized and emphasized again after workers inexplicably sparked two minor fires aboard the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD-3) and America’s undelivered super carrier, the John F. Kennedy (CVN-79).
The Navy’s pier-side safety standup is as welcome as it is overdue. But the Navy also needs to take a closer look at fire safety at sea and throughout the enterprise. In the past month, far too many have sought to minimize safety culture, claiming that the USS Bonhomme Richard conflagration was due to circumstances unique to the pier-side environment, and would not happen with a full crew aboard. That is a false comfort, as the U.S. Navy has already suffered a Bonhomme Richard-like fire at sea.
National Safety Council: Open roads led to dangerous driving
The council released figures for March, April and May — the worst of the pandemic restrictions keeping drivers off the roads — showing that despite lower traffic the death rate per million miles driven was up each month. In March, the death rate was 1.2 (1.07 in 2019), in April 1.45 (1.08) and in May 1.47 (1.19).
Those death rate numbers increased despite the number of miles driven being down substantially, including a high of 40% in April. Ms. Martin called the numbers “grim.”
“Unfortunately, the pandemic has actually exposed our national road safety culture for what it really is — deeply flawed and unfortunately in need of some immediate action,” Ms. Martin said. “We took cars off the roads, but we did not reap the safety benefits we should have experienced. Instead, for every mile driven our roads became deadlier even though they were much emptier.”
Panelists said they want to see a complete study of why the death rates are up, but they believe one factor is motorists feeling free to push the speed limit when there is little traffic on the road.
Please stop calling healthcare workers ‘heroes’. It’s killing us www.theage.com.au/national/…
We need to talk. It’s not that we don’t appreciate being appreciated. We do. But this ‘healthcare heroes’ nonsense is actually killing us. All over the world, people have clapped for healthcare workers, banged pots and pans out of their windows, praised us to the heavens and it’s not like there isn’t a roll call of the fallen to justify it all.
… Taiwan learned the lessons of the 2003 SARS epidemic and was ready, as was Vietnam. Canada, which itself had a SARS outbreak in 2003, failed to learn those lessons, as have most other English-speaking countries. There is a pattern here, a pattern of anglophone hubris, in which a disregard for the evident successes of Asian nations in protecting their healthcare workers borders on racism.
We need to forget the “hero” narrative, get serious about building a robust safety culture for our healthcare facilities and embark on the hard work and attention to detail required to re-engineer our system into one that works to protect us all.
New Travel Series Features Food And Culture, But Subtly Highlights Road Safety
A new summer travel series, “ASIRT Lite,” will debut on Thursday to offer future travelers a feel for the sights, sounds and smells of three different destinations, but keeping in mind the importance of each’s road safety culture.
“When you travel to any country, learning about the road safety in that country is an intricate part of what you need to know,” said Rochelle Sobel, founder of the Association for Safe International Road Travel (ASIRT). Her son, Aron, died in a bus crash in Turkey in 1995. He was a twenty-five year old medical student completing his final rotation by volunteering in a hospital abroad.
“That’s the message that we’re trying to give, because so many people do research on everything else, but they leave out road safety,” Ms. Sobel said. “Just like you want to know what restaurant to go to and what sights to be sure to see, you really have to know the road safety of the country. It’s a part of being an informed traveler.”
Restaurants Must Elevate Safety Culture, Not Just Protocols in COVID World
After being home during the months-long COVID-19 quarantine, many people rejoiced when restaurants and bars finally reopened. They were delighted to get drinks, enjoy delicious food, and socialize. Many restaurants and bars followed proper COVID-19 protocols: enforcing proper social distancing, requiring personal protective equipment (PPE), frequently cleaning, separating dining tables, etc. But some establishments blatantly disregarded the rules—and may be, at least partly, responsible for spreading the virus.
Nationally, restaurants and bars are becoming a common source of coronavirus outbreaks. Florida is seeing a tremendous spike in coronavirus cases, some of which have been linked to local establishments. For instance, in Jacksonville Beach, 16 friends went out to celebrate a birthday together, and, days later, all 16 tested positive for COVID-19.
Since mid-March, when COVID-19 was declared a pandemic in the U.S., many people have been afraid to leave their houses for fear of contracting the highly contagious, potentially deadly coronavirus. Patrons may have gotten takeout or delivery meals from their local restaurants, but many were unwilling to dine at restaurants, worried about the safety of doing so. Additionally, some restaurant employees have been reluctant to return to work, fearful about the exposure risks.
As we’ve seen over the past few weeks, their fears are legitimate. As COVID-19 cases spike in certain states—including California, Florida, and Texas—state officials are shutting down restaurants and bars again, trying to reduce the number of people contracting the virus.
Company Boards of Directors and senior executives of oil and gas companies should take notice of a May 14, 2020, guidance document issued by the Chemical Safety Board (CSB) entitled, “CSB Best Practice Guidance for Corporate Boards of Directors and Executives in the Offshore Oil and Gas Industry for Major Accident Prevention.,” And don’t be deceived by its title reference to offshore activities. Companies also need to pay mind to the guidance for onshore operations. Why? If there is an accident, government agencies will likely argue that the principles articulated apply equally as well on dry land.
Why issue guidance now? The guidance comes at the 10-year anniversary of one of the most significant offshore explosions in history—the Deepwater Horizon explosion that occurred in the Macondo Prospect in the Gulf of Mexico, offshore of Louisiana. The symbolic step of issuing the guidance just one week ahead of the 10 year anniversary of the May 20, 2010, Macondo blowout, fire, and explosion was surely intended to bring additional attention to its release.
The guidance focuses on boards of directors’ and executives’ roles in ensuring implementation of effective safety management systems to manage risks of major accidents properly. The guidance points to a recent industry report [1] noting that process safety is one of the least discussed topics at corporate board meetings. Clearly, the CSB perceives this to be a sign that top-level management at oil and gas companies are not paying enough attention to these issues.
Speeding problems rise during COVID-19 pandemic
(The Center Square) – Despite fewer cars on the roads because of pandemic restrictions, traffic crashes are becoming more deadly.
The National Safety Council, based in Itasca, reports a 23.5 percent increase in the fatality rate in May compared to last year.
Lorraine Martin, the president of the NSC, said the pandemic has exposed our national road safety culture for what it really is.
“It is clear that our open roads have created somewhat of an open season for reckless driving,” Martin said.
The number of miles driven in May dropped 25.5% compared to the year prior. Overall, the mileage death rate per 100 million vehicle miles driven was 1.47 in May compared to 1.19 in 2019.
Farm Safety Week brings timely reminder www.farmingahead.com.au/farm-offi…
Agribusiness > Farm-office22 July 2020CommentsShare Staff Writer Farmsafe Australia says paying attention and being aware of risks are vital aspects of providing a safe farm.
Awareness of risk is a critical factor, if not the most important factor, Farmsafe Australia says, in safety messaging with regard to any danger on farm.
“Farmers and farm employees generally know the risks associated with the tasks that they perform day to day, however a combination of familiarity, complacency, fatigue, stress et cetera, can be the difference between business as usual and tragedy on farm” says Charles Armstrong, chair of Farmsafe Australia.
“That is why the importance of on farm inductions, site specific risk assessments with follow up mitigation techniques and daily toolbox talks cannot be stressed enough. Inductions ensure that anyone new to the farm is familiar with the safety risks on farm and has basic information on how to avoid those risks.”
But what is risk awareness? It is simply the acknowledgement that a risk, or a combination of risks, are involved in an activity that is to be performed.
Site specific risk assessments and mitigation techniques ensure that farmers have considered all possible sources of danger and have put controls in place to minimise or eliminate those risks. Regular toolbox talks open up the lines of communication for all employees to be aware of new or existing issues.
“Unfortunately, the other factor that prevents the risk assessment method from being as effective as it should be is often the risk culture that is associated with farming,” Armstrong said.
“Risk culture is the social acceptance of the processes surrounding the identification, communication and management of risk. In farming, risk culture often sounds like ‘she’ll be right, mate, I’m only driving at slow speeds on the quad, so I don’t need a helmet or I’ve done it this way longer than you’ve been walking’.
“Driving cultural change towards best practice safety approaches is not always popular as it forces each and every one of us to look in the mirror and face the facts that every day, we make choices, or deflect the responsibility of making choices, that could severely injure or even kill ourselves or those we care about,” he said.
Vision Zero Maui seeks to make island’s streets safer
WAILUKU, Hawaii (KHON2) — Vision Zero Maui is seeking to eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries by 2040. The approach builds on previous work and promoting a safety culture. This, they’re hoping, will save an average of 18 traffic-related deaths due to crashes and over 100 injuries to bicyclists and pedestrians.
The Advisory Group is composed of representatives from the transportation, enforcement, education, public health, emergency response, equity, transit, biking, walking, and vehicle agency and organizations. Representatives from the following agencies and organizations are included in the Advisory Group: Maui County Mayor’s Office; Maui Metropolitan Planning Organization; County Department of Public Works; County Planning Department; County Prosecutor’s Office; Maui Police Department; Maui Fire Department; State Department of Transportation; State Department of Health; Healthy Eating, Active Living (HEAL) Coalition; Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD); Maui Bicycling League; and American Association of Retired Persons (AARP).
US lawmakers request FAA safety culture survey results
Two US lawmakers have asked the Federal Aviation Administration for results of an employee survey about the regulator’s safety culture as part of its investigation into the design, development and certification of the troubled Boeing 737 Max aircraft.
In a letter to FAA administrator Steve Dickson dated 20 July, lawmakers say the survey data and related analytical products – including presentations, memos, reports and statistical analyses – will help shed light on factors related to two crashes that killed 346 people, including eight American citizens The crashes led to the Max’s grounding in March 2019.
The lawmakers who requested the documents are chair of the House of Representatives’ Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure Peter DeFazio, and chair of aviation subcommittee Rick Larsen.
Ep.36 How do we tell the difference between theories and fads in safety? Topics:
Recent changes in the spread of ideas. Where new management techniques come from. How innovations get labeled. How messages often get broadcast. Six Sigma training. The acceleration and deceleration of broadcasting. Why general ideas are more diffuse. Be conscious of the differences between academics, promotors, and researchers.
Quotes:
“Interestingly, when we get into the literature, you may, um, look at those books with a little bit of skepticism, when you see how books on management get published.”
“The fads start off with small groups of innovators solving problems within their own companies. But those initial innovations aren’t able to spread by themselves.”
“But now that industries…not really having the uptake in behavioral safety practices they were maybe twenty years ago, you don’t see much broadcasting in the market for, you know, behavioral safety practices.”
NBAF UPDATE | Safety is fundamental to our success themercury.com/opinion/n…
At a world-class science facility with a large animal biosafety level 4 (BSL-4) laboratory like the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF), establishing a safety culture across all areas is one of USDA’s highest priorities.
Safety is a responsibility of every NBAF employee. We have hired teams of professionals who are dedicated to planning and facilitating all our safety efforts and others focused specifically on safety in our biocontainment labs. We also have established the NBAF Safety Committee comprised of volunteers across the organization to assist in education and awareness campaigns and ensure everyone at all levels has a voice in safety. These teams are essential to NBAF’s mission, but we want to incorporate a safety culture throughout NBAF, not just within a few critical groups.
We are working hard to develop that culture before the facility even opens. For example, we start every meeting of five or more people with a brief safety presentation — even virtual meetings. The topics range from the expected themes like biological risk safety practices and animal handling to general tips about weather safety and good health practices. Employee responses to these discussions have been overwhelmingly positive.
FAA Says Wings, Asrs-Like Programs Coming To UAS
The UAS Safety Team (UAST) is partnering with the FAA and NASA, emulating the existing Aviation Safety Reporting System to facilitate sharing of safety information, to promote trust, and to foster a safety reporting culture within the UAS community, Sean Cassidy, director of safety and regulatory affairs for Prime Air, Amazon’s drone delivery system, said in a session on the UAST.
“AOPA supports and appreciates the FAA’s effort in promoting safety culture best practices to the entire UAS industry through the Drone Advisory Committee [DAC], UAST, and FAAST Team,” said Cooper, who represents AOPA both in the UAST and the DAC’s Safety Culture for Drone Operators tasking group. That group seeks to help the drone community adopt the strong safety culture prevalent in manned aviation. Manned aviation’s safety culture is a pillar of general aviation’s strong safety record today, he noted. “A strong drone safety culture will significantly assist the safe and efficient integration of drones into the NAS.”
True cause of Grosvenor explosion must be found www.miragenews.com/true-caus…
The real cause of the explosion that rocked Grosvenor mine and severely injured five underground coal miners on 6 May must be fully understood before solutions are proposed, the Miners’ Union said today.
Initial findings released by Anglo American into the event have not addressed key questions about gas levels in the lead up to the explosion, adequacy of ventilation and the source of ignition, said CFMEU Mining and Energy Queensland President Stephen Smyth.
“It is a distraction for Anglo American to put forward proposals about technical fixes when we still don’t understand what caused the event.
“It is critical that all evidence is gathered before the mine is sealed.
“The whole underground mining community deserves to know whether unsafe conditions were being tolerated at Grosvenor in the lead-up to the May 6 explosion.
“As the largest underground coal mine operator in Queensland, the question of safety culture and standards at Anglo operations is critical.
“We will only understand that by careful examination of conditions in the weeks and months leading up to the explosion.
See which Utah businesses are pledging to Stay Safe to Stay Open
The Salt Lake Chamber launched the statewide campaign, Stay Safe to Stay Open, in partnership with the Utah Department of Health, to change the safety culture of business and its interaction with customers in the community.
Businesses and consumers needed a solution to the problem of remaining safe and open during the COVID-19 pandemic. The goal is to provide guidance that can be enduring despite the phase or state of the economic recovery.
The Utah Leads Together plan calls for creating a pledge and seal of approval that businesses could display in their establishments to announce that they are following state public health protocols. Stay Safe to Stay Open businesses take a pledge at stayopenutah.com to receive signage for their establishments that allow customers to know that they are following best practices to protect employees and consumers.
Munson Healthcare Manistee Hospital medical assistant honored for ‘Speaking Up’
MANISTEE — The Michigan Health and Hospital Association’s (MHA) Keystone Center honored Munson Healthcare Manistee Hospital’s Erin Warman with the quarterly MHA Keystone Center Speak-up! Award July 10.
The award acknowledges individuals or teams in MHA Keystone Center Patient Safety Organization (PSO) member hospitals who raise concerns about healthcare quality and safety and prevent potential harm to patients or staff.
Warman, a medical assistant working in Manistee Hospital’s provider offices, received the award for her persistence and dedication to speaking up on behalf of a patient. Warman identified a delay in medical treatment by family to a homebound patient and voiced her concerns to colleagues, senior leadership and the patient’s family.
“I simply did the right thing and spoke up for the best interests of my patient and the patient’s safety,” said Warman. “I felt comfortable speaking up because of our safety culture, and I’m happy that we avoided any harm to our patient.”
East Kent: Maternity scandal trust still had higher-than-average deaths last year, report says
He added: “But the number of babies born alive and subsequently dying in 2019 would put EKHUFT above the average.” He said Imperial College London’s Neonatal Research Group had agreed to carry out a review of mortality for the trust.
Concerns about the safety of maternity care at the trust’s Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, Hospital in Thanet prompted a review by the RCOG in 2016 which found a group of consultants who repeatedly refused to work evenings and weekends were leaving less experienced staff on their own. It also highlighted a poor safety culture with staff unwilling to raise concerns.
These failings were repeated in the case of Harry Richford more than a year later. An inquest into his death in January this year ruled he died as a result of neglect.
7 Ways to Improve Construction Safety Culture During a Pandemic
But Schlouch Incorporated’s successful construction safety culture didn’t happen overnight. It has been built with intentional consistency through years of experience.
“I like the book ‘Outliers,’ which talks about putting your 10,000 hours in before you get good at something,” Schlouch says. “I really believe in that.”
It’s a philosophy that Schlouch has relied on throughout his life, from his early days as a construction laborer at age 19 to starting his own company at 25 — in order to meet your goals, you need to purposefully work at it.
“Safety is often baked in as assumed, and it’s not assumed,” Schlouch says. “It is a constant that must be delivered every day, a block-and-tackle effort to really work safe.”
Two years after founding Schlouch Incorporated, he says he had a life-changing experience that permanently affected his views about construction safety.
Improving Safety For Victorian Farms
A newly established Farm Safety Council is providing advice to the Victorian Government and agriculture sector on how to reduce injuries and deaths of people on farms in Victoria.
The Council, established by Minister for Agriculture Jaclyn Symes has been meeting to provide guidance on the activities that could be prioritised by government to make farms safer and change farm safety culture, ultimately reducing the number of deaths and injuries on farms.
The agricultural sector is overly represented in fatality statistics, making up less than three per cent of the Victorian workforce but more than 30 per cent of workplace deaths.
Ep. 35 What is the relationship between leading and lagging indicators?
Similarities between Economists and safety professionals. Definitions of performance measures. The researchers methods for this study. What the data showed about this particular organization. Errors in human reporting. Practical takeaways from the study.
Quotes:
“One definition of a performance measure or indicator should be…the metric used to measure the organization’s ability to control the risk of accidents.”
“There’s lots of things in nature that aren’t supposed to generate bell curves.”
“Safety is performed by humans, who react to the things that they see.”
EasyJet ‘using sickness records to decide job cuts’
EasyJet has been accused of intending to use pilots’ sickness records when drawing up plans for over 700 job cuts.
The Balpa pilots’ union said it was “unnecessary and wrong”, claiming the airline was risking safety because unwell staff would report for work.
EasyJet said general absenteeism could form part of its assessment, but denied sickness might be a key component.
The airline said it had put forward initial proposals for talks with Balpa which were at a very early stage.
EasyJet is planning 727 pilot redundancies as part of up to 4,500 job cuts and a restructuring that includes closing bases at Stansted, Southend and Newcastle airports.
The airline has blamed the collapse in air travel due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Ahead of the start of formal talks, Balpa said the airline has told pilot representatives it will use sickness as a component in choosing who loses their job.
Brian Strutton, Balpa’s general secretary, called it outrageous. “Flight safety is built on a culture of openness and not fear of repercussions. This is a well understood and fundamental tenet for everyone involved in ensuring our skies are safe.
“It is unnecessary and wrong that easyJet is intending to use sickness as a stick to beat its safety-critical staff. EasyJet has in the past rightly encouraged pilots to report in sick or fatigued if they are unfit to fly - that is in everyone’s best interest.”
Chinese wind player joins Global Wind Organisation
China General Nuclear Power Group’s wind subsidiary has joined the Global Wind Organisation (GWO).
As well as joining the safety organisation CGN Wind Power has invested in its own GWO-certified training centre in Tianjin.
The centre will provide safety and technical training for the company’s growing workforce and other third parties from the wind energy supply chain. CGN Wind Power has installed over 14GW of capacity to date and will commit to using GWO standards for its workforce where appropriate.
GWO members collaborate to develop and set minimum standards for safety and technical training.
The training is delivered by large employers like CGN Wind Power as well as a network of more than 350 independent certified training providers in more than 40 countries around the world.
Almost 90,000 people had a valid GWO training record by 31 December 2019.
Shuting Kang, executive vice president at CGN’s training department, said: “Safety is our priority and we take great pride in giving our employees the correct training to keep them safe at work.
“Now, by joining Global Wind Organisation, CGNWP can make a meaningful contribution for our whole industry’s safety culture, helping to embed safe work practices and standards in China and across the world.”
Covid-19 boosts China’s food safety focus
he onset of the Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated an already heightened food safety culture in China according to speakers at Fruitnet Live: China.
A panel featuring Winstone Chee of Altitude Fresh and China retail specialist Stacey Wang discussed the changing shape of food safety in China and its importance in the fresh produce industry.
Chee said customers are becoming more educated on food safety and the need for retailers and suppliers to share this information is increasing.
He said while the pandemic had accelerated some changes in food safety, such as in e-commerce, China’s food safety culture had already been progressing.
One-fifth do not train line managers in health and safety
One in five organisations do not train their managers in health and safety, despite the view that they are often based placed to recognise and act on hazards.
A survey commissioned by the Institution of Occupational Safety and Health (IOSH) found 96% of company decision makers agreed that line managers had an important role in ensuring the people who report to them are safe and healthy yet, despite this high showing, nearly a fifth (19%) conceded their organisations failed to train line managers in health and safety.
Twenty-one per cent said management failure had contributed to an accident happening at work. Conversely, 25% felt management failure was rarely responsible for accidents.
Most of the organisations that did not upskill line managers in health and safety competence were SMEs, IOSH said.
“As with all risk, management are accountable for delivering a safe workforce and performance – first-line managers for ensuring controls are implemented and middle managers for providing the resources to deliver controls and the leadership for setting direction,” said IOSH’s head of advice and practice, Duncan Spencer.
Construction Industry Perspectives Op-Ed: Extending the safety culture to end racism
he initial response from industry leaders to recent acts of racism on Ontario construction jobsites was swift and clear: there is no place for racism in our industry.
And at least one of the specific companies involved has taken concrete steps to ensure such incidents never occur on one of their projects again.
But what will it take to address racism across the industry? No construction executive I know is naive enough to think that a few sternly worded social media posts and a toolbox talk are enough to eradicate this blight from the industry for good. It will take an intentional, united and sustained effort from all corners of construction to end racism and prejudice of any kind.
The good news is that we know what it takes to bring about this kind of culture change in Ontario construction because we have done it before.
In the wake of tragedies such as Hogg’s Hollow in the 1960s, industry leaders — labour, employers, owners, and government — came together and over time ushered in a massive transformation of workplace safety in construction.
No one for a second would suggest that everything is now perfect, but it is undeniable that through continuous collaboration Ontario’s construction sector has made an enormous shift in its approach to workplace safety: from loosely enforced compliance to a broadly-embraced culture of care for the way things get built in this province.
And the shift from safety compliance to safety culture has paid dividends. Ontario’s construction industry is profoundly safer today than it was a generation ago.
In recent weeks, construction has experienced another tragic wakeup call. High profile acts of racism have exposed a terrible burden that too many in the industry have silently carried with them until now.
We are kidding ourselves if we think these are isolated incidents. We owe it to people of colour and all minority communities, both within the industry and outside of it, to extend the culture of safety in all its forms to all people within construction, and most especially our racialized colleagues and co-workers.