The recent unfortunate deaths of three workers and the near death of another during the cleaning of a septic tank has once more brought into sharper focus the need to improve workplace health and safety practices in Jamaica.

Approximately two-thirds of confined space fatalities across industries, worldwide, have occurred when untrained workers have entered spaces to rescue incapacitated co-workers who have been exposed to noxious fumes (hazardous gases), similar to that which happened in the recent tragedy.

There are three other documented instances of fatal septic tank accidents that have occurred locally:

1) 1960s — three men were killed by noxious fumes, another injured, and one entered a septic pit at a worksite to retrieve a carpenter’s rule valued at 6 shillings and 6 pence, which accidentally fell inside

2) 2005 — three workers died from exposure to noxious fumes and another two were injured while performing work inside a well

3) 2011 – two workers died in a wet well from exposure to noxious fumes and another injured.

Given the potential danger associated with working in confined spaces, it is important to sensitise the public to the attendant hazards and best practices for confined space entry operations and provide an approach to address the concerns regarding occupational health and safety (OHS) nationally.

What is a confined space?

A confined space is a space that:

a) is large enough for a worker to enter and perform assigned work

b) is not primarily designed or intended for continuous human occupancy

c) has a limited or restricted entrance or exit, or a configuration that can complicate first aid, rescue, evacuation, or other emergency response activities.

Confined spaces can be found in different types of industries, facilities, and locations. Some examples of exposure in the Jamaican workplace that meet the criteria of a confined space include silos, hoppers, storage bins, vats, tanks, truck tankers, sumps, wet or dry wells, pits, septic tanks, pipes, boilers, utility vaults, manholes, shafts, aircraft wings, excavations, and ditches.

Hazards and risks associated with confined spaces

The health and safety risks associated with confined spaces are generally very high because of the limited means of entry and exit that make escape difficult. This is further compounded by the presence of hazards, which may be:

1) atmospheric — containing flammable gases, having too much oxygen, insufficient oxygen or having toxic gases that can result in fires, asphyxiation, or gas poisoning

2) having free-flowing solid or flowing liquid that can cause suffocation, drowning, or burning

3) mechanical components such as rotating fan blades, tapering sections, or the presence of electrical hazards which could cause crushing, entrapment, or electrocution

4) noise, vibration, poor lighting and visibility, excessive heat, biological, among others that can directly or indirectly result in injury or ill health

Jamaica has had some very tragic cases resulting from exposure to hazards during confined space work. A well-documented case occurred on June 24, 1904 at West India Electric Company Bog Walk Hydropower Station, where 33 of 61 men who had entered a pipe to carry out cleaning operations died from drowning and their bodies mutilated after being washed into the turbine.

Since 2005, at least 14 confined space-related accidents have occurred in the Jamaican work setting. This has resulted in 22 fatalities and seven injuries.

Fifty-five per cent of these fatalities resulted from exposure to hazardous atmospheric conditions (noxious fumes), while 36 per cent were attributed to engulfment by materials such as dirt, corn, or sugar and the remaining nine per cent were due to equipment design configuration/limitation.

Safe work best practices for confined space entry

Given the level of hazards and risks associated with confined spaces, employers and workers must take the necessary precautions when entering these spaces by:

1) ensuring proper identification, evaluation, classification, and labelling of confined space

2) training people performing confined space work in confined space work practices

3) ensuring outside contractors performing confined space work are competent and informed on site and space-specific hazards

4) instituting written safe work systems with designated person to supervise space entry

5) establishing entry and rescue plans for each confined space entry with provision for the use of non-entry rescue retrieval system by connecting a line to the worker inside the space and designating a standby rescuer to enter the space and perform the rescue

6) allowing only trained personnel to enter spaces to perform rescue

7) eliminating or reducing/controlling hazards in the space before a person enters

8) ensuring adequate isolation, locking and tagging out of the space before entry

9) draining/emptying and purging the space prior to entry

10) maintaining continuous forced ventilation of the space during entry

11)conducting pre-entry atmospheric (gas) testing and continuous atmospheric monitoring during entry operation

12) assigning an attendant (hole watch person) to prevent entry of unauthorised personnel, monitor and protect the entrants, and raise the alarm for rescue when needed

13) acquiring the necessary equipment, including personal protective equipment, to support entry and emergency rescue – gas monitors, ladders, rescue retrieval systems, harness, lanyards, respirators, safety footwear, eye/face protection, suitable protective body suits, etc

14) establishing a system of inspection and audit for compliance of confined space entry operations

15) conducting minimum annual confined space rescue drill, involving emergency agencies and trained rescuers

Lessons learnt and the way forward

Industrial accidents which have occurred in recent times have certainly provided great reminders to employers, the State, and employees on the need to implement robust safety systems to protect workers from occupational injury, illness, and death, which can have significant impact on workers, their families, employers, and the State.

Given the complexity of managing risks in the workplace, with the added mental/psychological hazards of the novel coronavirus pandemic, small, medium, and large businesses and the State can no longer afford to leave occupational safety and health to chance. It is, therefore, imperative that, as a country we adopt an agile response to the subject of health and safety and its impact on lives, livelihood, and businesses.

To achieve this:

• the State must promptly pass the Occupational Safety and Health Bill and enact pertinent regulations to effectively monitor and regulate workplace safety practices;

• organisations of all sizes must employ or retain the services of qualified and competent health and safety practitioners to assist in establishing, monitoring, and maintaining safe systems of work;

• those involved in construction and maintenance work should register with regulatory bodies, such as Professional Engineers Registration Board (PERB), Architects Registration Board (ARB) and be a part of professional societies such as Jamaica Institution of Engineers (JIE), Jamaican Institute Of Architects (JIA), Incorporated Masterbuilders Association of Jamaica (IMAJ), Jamaican Institute of Quantity Surveyors (JIQS) among others;

• public/private partnership should ensure that emergency response agencies, such as the Jamaica Fire Brigade, are resourced appropriately for timely response to major accidents to include fires, spills, confined space accidents among others; and

•mass and social media must be used to educate the public on the risks associated with high hazard activities – confined space, hot work, work at heights, work with or near electricity among others.

As a nation we must work together to ensure that regulations are in place to educate and protect workers whose jobs are inherently risky so that work-related accidents are minimised, if not eliminated.

Aldane Stennett is a registered professional engineer, certified occupational health and safety professional, and ISO lead risk manager with more than 30 years of industrial experience. Send comments to the Jamaica Observer or jie@cwjamaica.com.