2008 BLS stats

The Bureau of Labor and Statistics has released the official Injury and Illness statistics for the 2008 calendar year. http://www.bls.gov/news.release/osh2.nr0.htm Table 23 is usually one of particular interest to me: this breaks down the data by causation, rather than industry. Not that the social demographics aren't interesting - but I can't control the demographics of my work place. The cause (fall, exposure, etc.) are what industrial hygienists are out to control. Hopefully the fatality data will be later today.

1st Time Ever - follow up

I passed by the site two days later. The only thing which had changed was a thin little red plastic fence around the biggest pit. The kind of thing that's intended to be a visual "don't enter", and has not real ability to keep anything out. Fair enough. But ...

Still no sign. Still nothing to keep kids out of the other pits.

A couple days later I drove by again (it's actually on my way to 95% of the city). Nothing new. However, they were digging a trench - oh, about 5-6 feet deep (1.75 m). The worker is standing in the trench watching the excavator's shovel come down right in front of his face.

What possesses people to stand in a trench/pit while it is being excavated, with the bucket coming down right in front of their face? In all seriousness, is this just a macho-thing? At my 'field experience' last Summer, I ran into this, too. Luckily, the IH who was a real employee pulled a "get out of there now". It was like watching someone deal with my 5 year old.

I haven't had a chance to ask MN-OSHA if they made a site visit?