Top 6 Construction Site Hazards!

Construction sites are considered the potentially most dangerous and accident-prone parts of any work environment. Excessive exposure to these construction site hazards exposes workers to injury and possible death. To avoid this, a business must know how to identify and be aware of all potential hazards that may be encountered during normal business operations. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) wants all employees to have a solid understanding of their susceptibility to harm or injury in the workplace.

Listed below are the top six construction site hazards identified by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA):

1. Electricity: Electricity is one of the greatest dangers for people, whether at home or at work. Power line workers, electricians, and electrical engineers continually work with electricity and can be exposed to this hazard on a daily basis. On the construction site, the best way to prevent this type of hazard is for power line workers to be a safe working distance from power lines. Other precautionary measures include surveillance and isolation of the vehicle from which they can work. This would help prevent electrical hazards from injuring them while they work.
2. Excavation and Trenching: OSHA has recognized excavation and trenching as the most dangerous construction site operation. From 2000 to 2006, the United States Bureau of Labor and Statistics (USBLS) recorded 271 worker fatalities in trenches and cave-ins. These hazards can be prevented, but injuries related to these hazards are still occurring. Both employer and employee must follow safety rules and wear protective equipment to minimize hazards when trenching and excavating.
3. Falls – Falling from a scaffold greater than six feet or a fixed ladder greater than twenty feet is the most dangerous and common hazard on construction sites. Falls from high places like ladders, scaffolding, and roofs account for more than fifty percent of accidents that occur in the workplace. The usual cause of this incident is slipping, tripping, and using unstable stairs. There are thousands of reasons for fall hazards and to eliminate such hazards, employers must have a fall protection program as part of any overall workplace safety and health program. Workers must be trained to identify and assess fall hazards and be fully aware of how to control exposure to those hazards, as well as know how to properly use fall protection equipment.
4. Ladders and Ladders – According to OSHA construction safety and health standards, ladders and ladders are significant sources of injury and death among construction workers. These recorded injuries are serious enough to put a worker on sick leave. OSHA recorded approximately 24,882 injuries and 36 deaths per year related to falls from ladders and ladders used on the construction site. To prevent such accidents and injuries, employers and employees must comply with OSHA’s general rule for the safe use of ladders and ladders.
5. Scaffolding – Each year, approximately 60 workers are killed by falling from scaffolding; one in five falls on construction sites is fatal. The greatest potential hazard from scaffolding is due to the moving components of the scaffold; scaffolding failure related to damage to its components; load loss; being struck by suspended materials; electric shock; and an incorrect configuration. Construction workers who assemble and dismantle scaffolding and work platforms on construction sites are at risk of serious injury from falls. The risk of scaffolding is addressed in established OSHA standards. They give specific requirements for maximum load, when to use scaffolding, bracing, and the use of guardrails.
6. Heavy Construction Equipment: Approximately 100 construction workers are killed each year by heavy construction equipment. The main causes of such accidents include: ground workers struck when a vehicle reverses or changes direction; equipment overturns that insult the operator; mechanics get run over when the brakes aren’t on properly; and ground workers crushed by equipment falling from backhoes, buckets, and other moving construction vehicles. To prevent this type of risk, workers must follow all construction safety guidelines necessary to eliminate exposure to such injuries and accidents.

Construction site safety risks are unavoidable; however, these can be prevented by instructing workers on how to identify hazards that may be present in the workplace. The employer must establish adequate safety standards that meet the maximum requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. This will ensure that workers have a safe working environment during normal operation.

This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of construction site hazards; however, these six main elements are certainly important that all construction site employers need to be aware of and continually work to prevent from happening.