Playing with fire is dangerous. A common notion we all must’ve heard since childhood. And yet we get attracted to it and have been injuring ourselves in the process since childhood. One’s memories with fire may easily vary from slightly painful to traumatic. Uncontrollable fire can easily take the top ranking in the leaderboards of the worst nightmares. Fortunately, cases of mass fire are not that frequent. And the development of fire control measures also helps in keeping fires in check. But at the end of the day, getting caught in fire is and will always be painful.
As, with its various utilities, fire has made itself a requirement in human life, a lot of importance is given to safety measures for the types of equipment that use fire. Data from the U.S. Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics CFOI Research File tells us that with around 350 workers killed during the period 1992-2003, deaths due to fire and explosion in the construction industry still averages to around 35-40 deaths per year with many more injured.
Hazards in Construction Sites
Filled to the brim with various compounds of different degrees of flammability, sometimes a mere speck is enough to light up a construction site. Some of the dangers in construction sites include:
- Malfunction of electrical appliance
- Compressed gas cylinders
- Chemical tanks
- Explosives and blasting agents
- Fuel
- Vehicles and heavy equipment
- Combustible Liquids
Depending on the intensity and scale, fires due to mishandling the above can easily lead to some common construction injuries like:
- Death
- Traumatic brain injury
- Vision loss
- Hearing loss
- Bone fractures
- Appendage amputation
- Abdominal haemorrhage and perforation
How to reduce the risks in construction site
Being a labor-intensive job of handling raw building materials, eliminating the chances of injuries and accidents at construction sites is pretty impossible. But reducing the chances is. Following safety norms and being prudent and attentive can help one reduce the risk in construction sites. In the US, Occupational Safety and Health Administration(OSHA) requires the employer of a dangerous sector like construction to uphold certain regulations:
- Ensuring handling of explosives and hazardous objects by qualified and authorized personnel (Blasting and the use of explosive,1926.900).
- Ensuring appropriate distance between equipment like the heaters to be kept at least 10m away for combustible articles (Temporary heating devices, 1926.154).
- Using appropriate and approved containers for storing hazardous and flammable materials (Flammable liquids, 1926.152).
- Ensuring timely maintenance and proper fire control equipment and first-aid kits at an appropriate distance on-site. The employer is also responsible for implementing a fire protection program followed throughout all the stages of construction. (Fire protection, 1926.150).
Compensation for Injury in a Workplace Fire or Explosion
Sometimes even with all the precautions, one may be unable to prevent an accident. And construction site injuries can sometimes be very severe. According to laws in the US, treatment of construction injuries is to be paid for by the employer according to the protection plan implemented. In case such relief is denied, consulting a construction accident attorney is a good idea. A good construction site accident attorney can help one understand the intricacies of a case and, if possible, also help them with:
- Coverage for medical bills
- Compensation for lost income
- Compensation for pain in suffering damage
- Compensation for possible punitive damage on the grounds of negligence