A CHILLING incident in which a man’s arm was removed at the shoulder in a machine this week has prompted a WorkSafe warning that guarding had to be a higher priority for business.
The man, from Traralgon and in his late 30s, was operating a machine which peels bark from logs at a treated pine processing business not long after he started work on Tuesday morning.
Clothing was found caught up in the machine. The man is understood to be in an induced coma at the Alfred Hospital.
WorkSafe’s Executive Director for Safety, John Merritt, said the incident was a warning to all employers and workers.
“There have been more than 1000 traumatic work-related amputations in Victoria over the past five years.
“This is more than just a statistic. It’s people and their lives. They’ve been hurt in manufacturing, restaurants and café’s, meat works, construction, farming and other areas.
“There have been more than 1000 amputations in Victoria over the past five years. This is more than just a statistic. It’s people.
“Machines are stronger and/or faster than people. That’s why we use them. For that convenience there are risks that must be eliminated as far as practicable.
“The tragedy is that despite the long history and high awareness of the need to guard machines too many people fail to guard them.
“WorkSafe inspectors regularly find machines that have never been guarded, guards that have not been re-attached after repairs, maintenance or cleaning.
Incident investigators frequently hear of past warnings of ‘an accident waiting to happen’”.
“Apart from the work-related deaths reported each year, more than 60 serious injuries are considered to be ‘life threatening’, Merritt said.
“What this says is that many people survive their day at work with dreadful and often permanent injuries.
“They’ve gone to work and ended up in hospital, for weeks sometimes months, followed often by years of further treatment.
“Thousands more have lesser injuries that change their lives and limit their opportunities.”
“The potential to maximise safety exists in every workplace, with every employer and worker. Working together is a way of ensuring that everyone’s interests are protected,” Merritt said.
WorkSafe’s advisory service can be contacted on 1800 136 089 or go online to www.worksafe.vic.gov.au.
A free, independent three-hour small business consultancy service can also be booked by small businesses through WorkSafe or major employer groups.
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