Understand the Dangers of Electrical Shock

Republished from Occupational Health and Safety : By Fred Elliott Dec 01, 2015

Electricity is one of the most common causes of fires and thermal burns in homes and workplaces.

Two good sources for those seeking to understand the dangers of electrical shock are OSHA1 and NIOSH. Electricity is one of the most common causes of fires and thermal burns in homes and workplaces.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 141 workers died in the United States in 2013 from exposure to electricity and 156 died from that cause in 2014. r more than are killed by lightning strikes. Brief low-voltage shocks that do not result in any symptoms or burned skin usually don’t require medical care, but call 911 and seek care at a hospital emergency room for any high-voltage shock or a shock resulting in burns.

The severity of injury from electrical shock depends on the amount of electrical current and the length of time the current passes through the body, according to a NIOSH student manuals2 titled "Electrical Safety: Safety and Health for Electrical Trades." It states that 1/10 of an ampere of electricity moving through someone’s body for only two seconds is enough to cause death, and internal current of less than 10 milliamperes (milliamps or mA) can make a person unable to control the muscles of the arm and hand. "When this 'freezing' happens, a person is no longer able to release a tool, wire, or other object. In fact, the electrified object may be held even more tightly, resulting in longer exposure to the shocking current. For this reason, handheld tools that give a shock can be very dangerous. If you can't let go of the tool, current continues through your body for a longer time, which can lead to respiratory paralysis (the muscles that control breathing cannot move)," according to the manual.

It points out that defective or misused electrical equipment is a major cause of electrical fires, and that workers should use only a Class C or multipurpose (ABC) fire extinguisher on a small electrical fire.

There are four main types of injuries: electrocution, electric shock, burns, and falls. They can happen in a variety of ways:

• Direct contact with exposed energized conductors or circuit parts. When electrical current travels through someone’s body, it can interfere with the normal electrical signals between the brain and muscles, potentially causing the heart to stop beating properly, breathing to stop, or muscles to spasm.
• When the electricity arcs from an exposed energized conductor or circuit part through a gas (such as air) to a person who is grounded (that would provide an alternative route to the ground for the electrical current).
• Thermal burns, including burns from heat generated by an electric arc and flame burns from materials that ignite from exposure to electrical currents or an electric arc flash.
• An arc blast can include a pressure wave released from an arc flash. The wave can cause injuries and create noise that can damage hearing.

Working Near Power Lines
Working on a ladder near power lines is inherently dangerous. OSHA cautions that electrocution was the third-leading cause of the more than 700 deaths among U.S. construction workers in 2011, and that electrocutions typically cause about 10 percent of construction workers' deaths. Training workers, pre-job planning, and taking the right precautions can prevent these, according to the agency, which urges employers to:

• Train all workers about the hazards and about maintaining clearance from overhead power lines. Working too close to an energized power line can expose a worker to an electric arc that could result in burns, shock, or electrocution even if the worker doesn't come in contact with the power line.
• Use ladders with non-conductive side rails, which are safer but do not guarantee protection from an energized power line.
• Inspect ladders before and after each use, and use ladders that are clean, dry, and undamaged.
• Don't carry or move extension ladders in the upright position. Get help moving ladders to keep control and prevent accidental contact with energized overhead power lines.
• If a ladder should accidentally hit an overhead power line, do not touch it; quickly move away and call the electric utility company immediately.
• If appropriate clearance from an overhead power line cannot be met, contact the utility company to de-energize and ground the line or ask for insulation to be installed over the lines to protect workers.

References
1. "Electrical Safety Training for the Manufacturing Industry"
2. "Electrical Safety: Safety and Health for Electrical Trades"

The Importance of CPR & AED Safety Training

One challenge with saving victims of cardiac arrest is that there is often a lag before bystanders take action.

This article originally appeared in the September 2014 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.
By Jeff Walters, Sep 01, 2014

Before convincing a company's leaders to install automated external defibrillators in their offices and campuses, Marc Lawrence says he often has to start with a heart lesson. First, he has to explain that sudden cardiac arrest is not the same as a heart attack, that there often are no symptoms, and that it's not something that only affects mostly seniors, but can happen at any age.

"Customers just aren't aware of the prevalence of sudden cardiac arrest," said Lawrence, the president of Downing Digital Healthcare Partners. He has spent more than 25 years working in medical device sales and information technology. In speaking with groups about AEDs, Lawrence often asks his audience to guess how many people experience sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) in the United States each year.

"The highest number I ever received was 80,000, with everyone thinking it mostly affects people all over 65 years of age," he said. Actually, the number is about 424,000, with victims ranging in age from young children to adults.

Analysis of the workplace fatalities reported to the Occupation Safety and Health Administration showed that up to 60 percent might have been saved if AEDs were immediately available and companies were not just relying on EMS.

A Leading Cause of Death
Sudden cardiac arrest is the leading cause of death in the United States and Canada, with nearly four out of five cases occurring outside a hospital. Bystanders–whether in a public gathering space such as an airport or shopping mall, or in a workplace–play an in important role in improving the chances of survival, said Dr. Robert W. Neumar, M.D., Ph.D., who is a professor and chair of the Department of Emergency Medicine for the University of Michigan Health Systems. "In cardiac arrest, every minute counts," Neumar said. "If you consider the time it takes for a medical responder to arrive versus a co-worker or bystander, it can mean the difference between life and death."  Continue reading by clicking here.