A recent Safety Flash by the International Marine Contractors Association (IMCA) focuses on an incident in which a crew person was changing the lamp bulbs on the vessel mast, working at a height of around 4m above the deck.
The incident
The person was wearing a full set of PPE including a certified safety harness with a lanyard equipped with a shock absorber. There was a Permit to Work in place.
However, the total length of all this safety equipment had not been properly taken into account.
- 1.75m: the safety lanyard shock absorber;
- 2m: the lanyard itself;
- 1.9m: the approximate height of the person being protected.
This added up to 5.65m, whereas the person was working 4m above the deck. In the case of a fall from height, the fall arrest equipment would have been of no use and the person could have fallen to deck unprotected. He did not fall – no-one was injured.
What went right and wrong?
- Right: the crew person was wearing fall arrest equipment and there was a Permit to Work in place – some incomplete assessment of risk had at least taken place;
- Wrong:
- The risk assessment was not adequate; no-one thought to check that the proposed work height relative to the length of the fall arrest equipment;
- No-one noticed or considered that the fall arrest safety lanyard was clearly marked “Minimum 6m clearance distance” (see image);
Lessons learned
Correctly calculate your fall arrest!