Canadian Occupational Safety (COS) magazine is the premier workplace health and safety publication in Canada. We cover a wide range of topics ranging from office to heavy industry, and from general safety management to specific workplace hazards.
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22 Canadian Occupational Safety www.cos-mag.com By Linda Johnson F rom sewers to wheat silos, con- fined space worksites present some of the most demanding work conditions imaginable — and some of the most dangerous. Atmospheric haz- ards create sudden, unexpected risks, while limited entry areas make rescue complicated and diffi cult. Training for workers, both inside and outside the area, must be thorough and rigorous — for where there's little room to work, there's even less room for safety errors. " e diff erence between confi ned space and other site hazards is that, invariably, in confi ned space, the acci- dents aren't minor. It's not a case of people getting hurt; it's a case of people dying," says Geoff Clark, senior occupa- tional hygienist at WorkSafeBC. Confi ned spaces exist typically in large industries: construction, transpor- tation and shipping, utilities, oil and gas, food and beverage and municipal ser- vices. However, they can be present in all types of workplaces and occupations. "Since 2000, there have been 18 or 19 deaths in confi ned spaces in B.C., and they have been in every industry," he says. "Every employer in B.C. has a regulatory requirement to identify con- fi ned spaces on site and put a [safety] program in place if they have them." Across federal and provincial law, a confi ned space is generally defi ned as an enclosed or partially enclosed space that: • is not designed for coninuous human occupancy; • has restricted access and egress; and • may become hazardous due to its design, construction, location, atmo- sphere or contents. Gerry Culina, manager of general health and safety services at Hamilton, Ont.-based Canadian Centre for Occu- pational Health and Safety (CCOHS), says it's useful to associate confi ned space with types of activity. "If you have to crawl, climb, twist or exert to go in and out of a space; if there are things you have to manoeuvre around, like a bulkhead or machinery; if there are narrow passages or openings that you have to squeeze to get through — these are signs it could be a confi ned space," he says. "And if a worker has to enter a site from the top or bottom, as with a silo or culvert, it should be considered a confi ned space." Lack of training, Culina says, is the major reason for confi ned space inju- ries. Workers need to know they have the right to be trained in confi ned space entry. ey should understand what precautionary procedures they should follow and what to do in the event of an emergency. ey should also know rescue procedures should be ready before they enter a space. Workers must receive thorough training in atmospheric hazards, such as low oxygen and toxic gases, which are among the greatest dangers of con- fi ned spaces. Hazardous gases, fumes and vapours can appear suddenly and unexpectedly, Culina says. Drainage workers, for example, are o en exposed to gas leaks from under- ground fuel tanks and gas utility pipes. In 2005, two sewer workers in Wash- ington D.C. died a er exposure to methane gas, possibly from pipelines and decomposing leaves. " e gas is o en odourless, colour- less and tasteless, and it hits so quickly many people never realize what's happening to them. ey become dis- oriented. It can happen in any area that's limited in access," he says. e fi rst stage of training, in class- room or online, begins with making sure all workers are able to identify a confi ned space, says Ron O'Neil, director of Calgary-based Fall Protec- tion Group. It should then cover in detail the safety protocols on how to approach, enter and exit a space. is includes knowing how to assess physi- cal and atmospheric hazards, and how to reduce or eliminate them. e space may need to be isolated, by disconnect- ing pipes and electricity going into it. Sometimes, ventilation or purging may be required. Workers should understand signage related to hazards and know proper procedures for donning and doffi ng personal protective equipment (PPE) — such as gloves, respirators, safety harnesses and fall arrest equipment. Workers should be familiar with federal and provincial legislation on confi ned space and understand the legal requirements regarding entering and working in confi ned space, says Ian Reece, program development co- ordinator for research, education and specialty consulting at the Infrastruc- ture Health and Safety Association (IHSA) in Mississauga, Ont. ey need to learn, too, about the entry permit, says WorkSafeBC's Clark. Issued by the safety program administra- tor, the permit outlines how to enter the space, what testing is needed and how the space will be ventilated. It also con- tains a complete equipment checklist. Clark says training must include a hands-on component. Workers can practise testing with gas monitors until they're confi dent using them, and prac- tise going in and out of small spaces. Hands-on training allows simulated rescue to be performed to ensure every- one understands emergency response procedures, Reece says. "If a worker says he needs a tripod retrieval system, safety harness or ven- tilator for the space, then we go through a step-by-step process of checking to make sure all that equipment is there and working properly," he says. Hands-on experience is essential, Clark says. If there's an emergency and workers have to get out fast, proper procedures and equipment use must already be second nature. "If someone has told you, 'Put your right arm in, then your shoulder, and pull yourself out,' you're going to forget all that. You'll just be trying to fi gure out any way to get out," he says. e standby, or watch, person — who is stationed outside to maintain com- munication with the inside worker and is ready to initiate rescue procedures — also requires rigorous, hands-on training, O'Neil says. Confi ned space accidents are o en characterized by multiple casualties, he explains. Typically, one person enters a space and collapses. e standby worker sees the person is in trouble, goes in and succumbs to the same hazard. A third person wonders what happened and follows them in. "A key part of the training is in the discipline of following the established emergency protocol, and we believe strongly that training infl uences atti- tudes," he says. A rescue team, which performs annual rescue scenarios, must remain on site during work. In B.C., Clark says, most employers hire outside agencies that specialize in rescue. Large com- panies o en have their own internal rescue teams. Looking ahead, O'Neil believes train- ing needs to focus on making workers more cautious in identifying confi ned spaces. Environments that are dirty, involve chemicals or are obviously dif- fi cult to work in are easy to identify. But confi ned spaces o en occur in open areas, beside a lake or in the middle of a fi eld. " at's where errors are made. ere are many fatalities where it's not obvi- ous. Some situations appear innocuous, but they're deadly," he says. "We have to have a really broad view of what a confi ned space is and be will- ing to apply a confi ned space approach to spaces that we may think are not overly confi ned." For Reece, quality of training is still a concern. Although excellent training programs are available, many compa- nies do not hire competent instructors. In Ontario, there is no regulated or legislated competency standard an instructor or facilitator must meet. Although the province is moving in this direction, he notes, it is not there yet. "We have to ensure that the people who are doing the training are compe- tent in their fi eld," he says. On the bright side, Reece adds, in Canada generally, workers are becom- ing better prepared to deal with confi ned spaces. "We're getting better at training, and the legislation is improv- ing," he says. "It's a progression I see. We're on the right track." Linda Johnson is a freelance writer based in Toronto. Linda can be reached at lindajohnson@sympatico.ca. BROAD APPROACH TO CONFINED SPACE Training workers in proper identifi cation, hazard control and rescue procedures is essential in preventing confi ned space related injuries and fatalities