Preventing Slips, Trips and Falls

The second most common vehicle related injury after traffic accidents are slips and falls. Employees are at risk if they handle materials during loading and unloading, walk in and out of the back of trucks or vans, or operate a company vehicle.

Best Practices to Limit Accidents:

The most common accidents occur when employees jump in and out of vehicles, lose their balance or slip when exiting or entering the back of a vehicle.

To Lower Their Risks:

• Always climb in and out of the truck cabs and never jump.
Inspect surfaces to see if they are uneven, damaged, or slippery.
Hold on to a truck door when entering or exiting.
Wear shoes with non-slip soles.
Never run down stairs.
Use carts for moving large loads that might block your vision.
Always pull carts up ramps and back them down.
Do not hold onto round surfaces such as fuel tanks for balance, they may be slippery.
Install slip resistant flooring materials or apply anti-slip solutions that contain gritty compounds on concrete, wood, and metal floors.

Most common everyday falls often seem minor without resulting in any serious injury. When you think of workplace falls dramatic falls from higher elevations come to mind. However during the course of a workday anyone can slip, trip, or fall anywhere under a broad range of conditions, even in a seemingly benign setting.

There are three laws of science involved in a slip, trip, or fall: friction, momentum, and gravity.

• Friction is necessary to maintain a grip on the walking/working surface. Remove the friction and you will slip.
When you encounter an object in your walking path and are thrown off balance your momentum (the speed at which you are moving) will cause you to trip.
Gravity is the force that pulls you to the ground. Once a slip or trip is in progress the end result is usually a fall, which is only stopped by changing surface levels.

Everyone has slipped, tripped, or fallen most times without great injury. Slips and trips occur more frequently resulting in sprains or strains. Falls from elevations may occur infrequently but serious or fatal injuries typically result.

More Safety Tips