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Safety Alert 01 - Man-riding Near Miss
What Happened ?
An offshore drilling operation stalled when a control system was inadvertently activated. A man was hoisted in a harness to release the elevators. When the man landed on the rig floor the travelling block was then lowered. The man was removing the harness when the block fouled the harness line, which was itself fouled over the racking fingers. The man was lifted off the ground towards the monkey board before the block was stopped. Interviews revealed that the man-riding activity in this case was under the controls stated in a permit that was issued for an earlier unrelated activity. The incident had clear fatality potential as the man was raised in excess of 4 metres.
Key Lessons
Man-riding is an inherently risky activity and appropriate risk management processes should be used to reduce the risk. Blanket permits are inappropriate to control inherently risky activities such as man-riding. Man-riding was conducted in this instance when other options were available that would not expose a person to the potential to be harmed. Man-riding hoists have traditionally been controlled manually. It is possible to install simple, effective hard barriers to remove the likelihood of human error in controlling this type of activity. Risk assessment must target specific tasks or activities to be effective
Recommendations
Man riding is an inherently risky operation that should only be performed if no other options are available. It is recommended that operators conduct risk assessments of current systems and include hard barriers to reduce risk, such as locks or automatic controls where appropriate. Man-riding activities should be planned, supervised and closed-out individually. Blanket permits should not be used to control man-riding activities. The use of best practice guidance such as Step Change for Safety publication "Best Practice Guide to Man-riding Safety" is recommended. (http://stepchangeinsafety.net/stepchange/RedirectToIndividualItem.aspx?ID=3131)
Contact
For further information email:
alerts [at] nopsa.gov.auand quote Alert 01.
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