Back to the Basics

Something that happens far too often in excavation safety training classes is related to the most basic issues. I have discovered that even though the group I’m addressing has attended excavation safety classes in the recent past, they still surprise me with revelations of unsafe practice that I consider “basic”. While instructors around the country would agree with that, I’m certain they all could provide a wide variety of hair-raising examples.

An example that has come up repeatedly and is fresh on my mind is the basic principle that no one is to enter an excavation to install or remove a protective system. That is basic excavation safety. There is NO protective system that requires someone to enter the excavation to either install or remove it.

Let me stop here and say for the reader who has issues with this and may not understand how to install or remove a particular protective system safely, please contact a trusted trench safety representative and get some help.

If there is ever a situation where it looks like an employee will have to enter an unsafe excavation to either install or remove a protective system, the answer is that we haven’t consulted the right people. In other words, keep asking until a practicable solution is found. It might require the advice from a manufacturer representative, a trench safety expert, or a registered professional engineer.

A mind-set that some have is “We won’t put anyone into an excavation to install or remove a protective system unless it is absolutely necessary.” That is not the right attitude or approach to this problem. The premise we should work from is “We will never put anyone in an excavation to install or remove a protective system”, and then proceed from that position to find a workable solution.

I once had a conversation with a fire rescue chief about a cave-in rescue that his team had conducted. He said what made the rescue difficult was the fact that the victim was tangled up in the vertical shore he was trying to install. It turns out the victim was in the excavation attempting to hold the vertical shore in place while a coworker was in the process of pumping the shore. The trench collapsed before the shore was installed. Fortunately, the victim survived the ordeal.

If that trench was safe to be in before the shoring was installed, they wouldn’t need to be messing around with shoring at all. But it isn’t safe, and the inevitable cave-in is a predictable hazard. That is why one of the most basic of all excavation safety principles is to install and remove shoring from outside of the trench. No exceptions.

So, keep pushing this basic principle. Repeat it loudly and often. It can save someone’s life.

For more information on this and other excavation safety topics please visit www.trenchandexcavationsafety.com

There you’ll find Trench and Excavation Safety by the Book. It is an excavation safety reference guide and contains a copy of the federal register. The best part is that the cost of this book is an affordable $39.00 so share a copy with your co-workers and employees.

Keep learning my friends.