The Australian Transport Safety Bureau (ATSB) composed a video that offers information on the hazards and risks of working on a railway as part of Rail Safety Week. It was held last 12 to 18 August 2013 with the goal of raising awareness on safety issues surrounding the Australasian Rail Industry.
“The ATSB has investigated several accidents that have occurred when maintenance work was being carried out around railway tracks.” said ATSB Chief Commissioner Martin Dolan. The Chief Commissioner believes that rail work safety has become one of their top priorities. He emphasised that it is a labour issue that needs greater attention by the Australian railroad industry.
He added, “These accidents were primarily the result of safe working rules and procedures not being correctly implemented. We think more can be done to improve the safety of rail workers, particularly in the areas of good work practices, coordination, and communication. The accident highlighted on this video provides a powerful reminder of the importance of following rules and procedures.”
Queenslanders are encouraged during the Rail Safety Week to consider rail safety at crossings and to be cautious at all times when in rail corridors.
Studies revealed that there were 351 near misses on network in 2012 and one motorist/pedestrian crosser is gambling his life at a railway crossing each day. Workers are risking their lives when they force through pedestrian security gates or race past lowering boom gates just to save a few minutes to catch up with their work.
According to the Queensland government, there were some 5,500 cases of trespass and illegal track crossings, with 5,133 occurring near train tracks in South East Queensland last 2012.
Life Threatening Ventilation Shafts
HVAC technicians are exposed to high work risk in doing ventilation shaft work. A fall down a shaft may injure a technician as shafts are usually dozens of feet long. Compliance safety software can be a very useful tool that will ensure workers’ safe by alerting management to the various dangers that a worksite presents.
A technician recently fell down a shaft while doing work on the cooling and heating systems at a local campus library in Queensland. Rescue workers found him unconscious but he was able to communicate afterwards. The rescuers found that he sustained serious injuries after extracting him from the shaft and he was transported through a helicopter to a nearby hospital.
