Welcome to the SafetyCloud Blog

Since the week of the 4th of September, an unknown number of illegal miners have been trapped at the Langlaagte disused mine shaft. Johannesburg’s oldest gold mine was cordoned off after a fire halted rescue operations. It is not clear if it is one group trapped, or a number in numerous locations, but so far three illegal miners have managed to free themselves. One eyewitness reported, "Yesterday I heard a Sotho guy say they have 51 guys in there, except our guys. I don't know (sic)."

On Tuesday the 6^th of September, the Howard College Law Library was set on fire at the University of KwaZulu-Natal as part of the current protests occurring on campus. The fire was started around 4pm, but was extinguished before any real damage could be done. This follows a large auditorium being set alight at around 11.30pm on Monday night.

So what does an act of vandalism have to do with SHE principles? For one thing, this incident proves that one of the dangers of fire is its suddenness – that it can happen in a moment, and it is best to be as prepared as possible so that if a fire does occur, you can minimise both the danger to people and the damage to property.

Let’s first take a look at the most common causes of workplace fires, and then the strategies to counteract them.

Photo credit: News24

In our last blog, we discussed the six NOSHCON 2016 presentations that could have an impact on how we see health and safety in the near future. Today, we’re offering you a chance to view some of what other leading industry experts had to say at the conference. Take a look…

This week, the 55th NOSHCON conference took place at the Champagne Sports Resort in the Drakensburg. As one of the leading risk management conferences, NOSHCON explores the latest in in risk management products and services, and showcases practical solutions and best-practice risk management concepts to a host of industries.

Health and safety issues in the workplace seem like they would be obvious, but there are hidden hazards that could kill you! Take a look at our infographic to find out the 13 hidden dangers you need to be looking out for in the workplace! 

What’s the best way to prove something’s efficacy? By hearing on-the-ground testimonials of what it’s like to be a SHE professional, and the health and safety training they have had, we can see first hand whether something is proving to actually work. Last week we sent out a call to you, asking for your personal stories of how health and safety (its training, and the commitment it instils) literally helped you and your colleagues save lives.

Here’s what you had to say…

The steps for how to handle – and report – a serious injury at work need to be followed to the letter to avoid penalties from the Department of Labour. It is also important because they will help you identify work-related health and safety hazards, risks and dangers (i.e. identify the causes of incidents). It will ensure you put appropriate controls in place to prevent further occurrences of such events.

 In other words, you perform an incident investigation to find out:

• what happened,
• why it happened, and
• how to prevent it from happening again.

We know – this shouldn’t even be something that is necessary. But sometimes, if a company is checking the minimum requirements of meeting its legal health and safety obligations, asking for any additional training may appear unnecessary to your boss, greedy even (especially if they are expected to foot the bill). BUT – all organisations are different and if you have identified a lack in your current health and safety processes, it is your duty to motivate for the training you’ll need to fill that lack. Here are five motivators to help you – and your employer.

Picture it: Erika in finance comes to you complaining of a terrible headache. Good thing you have that aspirin in the first aid kit right? Wrong. It is in fact against the law to keep any headache tablets in your workplace kit. What if Erika has blood issues, and the tablet’s effect sets off a complication? Then you’re liable for what happens to her next. A simple mistake with devastating consequences.

Want to know what sort of health and safety officer you are? Take the NOSA quiz to find out!