Many things in your daily life, either on land or at sea, can be dangerous and damaging if they are not handled in a timely manner.
Here are a few real-life examples:
• A paint crew was working on a large pier and just before they knocked off for the day they’d take any paint or thinner soaked rags into a trailer and put them in an airtight container. One night, a painter decided that he’d have to use a rag first thing the next morning so he left the container open. The rag container caught fire, destroying the trailer and badly damaging the pier it was sitting on. The spontaneous combustion of paint-soaked rags caused over $45,000 in damage. The lesson is never sacrifice safety for time.
• A ferry had some internal piping protruding through the deck that ran along the toe rail for several feet until it bent back below deck. The crew would stand on it during docking and undocking while handling lines. The captain and owner were both made aware by an insurance surveyor that this was a slip hazard. There was also the possibility that a work boot could become lodged under the piping. It was one of those “we'll fix it when we get time” deals. The fix was finally attended to $350,000 later, when a crewman twisted his knee and filed a Jones Act claim. Lesson: Fix it now, before damage or injury occurs.
• Land and sea gangways: I’ve seen several instances where claims have been paid because gangways have had loose non-skid pads, worn non-skid paint, step edges worn to the point they were a slip hazard, and poorly attached or non-aligned gangways. Sometimes we get so used to dealing with hazards that we overlook them simply because they have either never resulted in an injury or that everybody knows how to avoid the bad spots. Lesson: Procrastination can lead to injury and is not pro-safety.
The fix for any of the above real-life examples was neither expensive nor time-consuming. They all simply needed to be attended to right away but weren't.
A daily safety check is easy and it costs nothing but a small amount of time. It can save you money, hassles and keep your insurance premiums from going through the roof. Don't procrastinate, do it now.
