New OSHA eTool for Power Worker Safety
Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) says about 80 workers die from electrical shock annually while working on electrical equipment or associated utility operations. To help foreclose such fatalities, OSHA has published the Electric Power Generation, Transmission, and Distribution Standard eTool.
Late deaths have illustrated the risks of working with electric power, according to federal agency. One worker establishing decorative lights on a tree was electrocuted after contacting a high-powered overhead electrical cable. Another was electrocuted after touching an overhead high-voltage line with a portable light tower while doing work at a water main repair site.
The Internet-based article addresses the standard and explains cautionary measures to protect workers. These include catering personal protective equipment, using lockout/tagout procedures to preclude start-up of energized equipment, and abiding safety requirements when working on or near power lines.
