​Years ago, I was a student in the Forestry, Wood Products program in college. A couple of our university professors organized a five-day field trip to businesses in the Midwest. The trip included a visit to the worksite of a prominent alumni named Gregg, who was a site manager at a wood products manufacturing company. Our hosts were gracious and introduced us to some of the best wood products manufacturing techniques and provided tours of the sites and answered questions we had about the Forestry, Wood Products profession.
 
Four years later, while I was working in a wood products manufacturing facility as a supervisor, hundreds of miles away, I heard the tragic news that Gregg died in a major fire event at the plant-site along with two other co-workers. During a construction project on the site, a conveyor belt got sparks in it and transferred the fire to multiple places in the facility. This caused at least one dust explosion. Employees at the site made heroic efforts to stop the fire. Over 100 firefighters responded, and many of the workers were trapped and had to be rescued by the firefighters. At least seven other employees were injured in the fire and dust explosion that occurred.
 
This event saddened me on multiple levels. I want to focus on one of these levels. The fact that I worked in a similar industry with comparable hazards and potential exposures was not lost on me. In the years since the incident, I have endeavored to better understand and study the causal factors of this incident.
 
I have identified several key areas that could have helped prevent the fire and the tragedy that followed based on the news reports and investigation findings of this preventable disaster. I offer some of these lessons for you to consider as you work to prevent similar serious incidents at any worksite in all industries:

1. Management of contractor activity onsite
   1. Are the contractor safety policies and procedures compatible with the host facility?
   2. Does your contractor understand your fire prevention procedures?
   3. Does your contractor have specific hot work procedures that involve posting of alerts, fire watch, and site inspections?
   4. Does your contractor provide training and basic firefighting equipment to their employees that will be on your site?

 

1. Emergency response planning
   1. Does your emergency response planning cover every potential emergency that could occur at your worksite?
   2. Do you perform periodic evacuation drills and simulated emergency events?
   3. Are your local emergency responders familiar with your site and the potential hazards?
   4. Do employees have specialized training and equipment required for dealing with anticipated emergencies?
   5. Do employees understand what kinds of fires they can safely fight?

 

1. Hazard Identification and controls
   1. Is your organization recognizing and reporting hazards that can contribute to serious disaster events?
   2. Consider hazards such as dust, inadequate non-code electrical components, and hot work procedures. Consider the locations and sources of heat, electricity, and fuel that could contribute to an emergency.
   3. Does your operation implement controls that focus on eliminating the possibility of potential immediate causes?
   4. Are these controls inspected and evaluated on a regular basis?
   5. Do you have systems in place that could tell you when these controls are not being used?
   6. Are you performing regular preventive maintenance to assure that a mechanical problem won’t cause a dangerous condition?

 

1. Are routine housekeeping efforts at the facility sufficient to prevent dangerous conditions?

 

1. Pre-task planning for non-routine tasks
   1. Do employees have pre-task discussions as a group about the challenges posed by tasks that are not routine?
   2. Is enough time allocated to non-routine tasks to prevent workers from trying to do a sensitive task in a rushed manner?

 

1. Management of change
   1. Does the change planning process for significant repairs or additions include potential safety problems that could arise?
   2. Does the change project create additional hazards that we can plan on mitigating before construction or re-organization?
   3. At the beginning of your project, can you engineer integral bypasses, containment, and emergency detection systems that can help isolate a serious problem before it spreads?

 
A thorough study of these concepts and considerations by your work team can prevent heartbreaking events that are difficult to live with. Using these techniques can prevent a multitude of hazards and injuries. Here are some resources that I have found that are good guides to help you in your efforts:
 
https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/emergencypreparedness/index.html
 
https://www.saif.com/safety-and-health/topics/prevent-injuries/combustible-dust-and-flammable-materials.html
 
https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/etools/evacuation/fire.html
 
https://osha.oregon.gov/OSHAPubs/pubform/Fire-prevention-plan.pdf
 
 
David Hanson, CSP
Vice President, ASSP – Southern Oregon Chapter
Senior Safety Management Consultant, SAIF Corporation
 
David has an expertise building dynamic safety teams and developing high-performing safety cultures. He spent 18 years at Timber Products Company as a Supervisor and Safety Coordinator and facilitated continued certification into Oregon OSHA's Voluntary Protection Program (VPP).

Where did Chapter Year 2019/2020 Go?
What an interesting time this has been. There are so many things going on in our world that it seems like time is just a blur. We had a great safety conference last October and then it seems like paths of life started to go in all different directions—at least it seemed that way when we watched the news.   

By now, this is a common discussion point around the watercooler—albeit the conversations may be occurring while working from home or while maintaining 6 feet of separation from others. It has been a difficult time, and it has gone so fast. In fact, I will have completed my term as chapter president in the month of June. I did not complete nearly anything I set out to do as the president. In fact, we even had to cancel the safety conference for 2020! Yep, the end of 2019 and so far in 2020, there have been upsets, letdowns, resets, and operational changes.  

Despite the challenges and not being as successful in my position as I wanted to be, I will hold my head up and march on because that’s what safety professionals do!Actually, the real reason I will march on is because I know the chapter is in great hands with the brilliant and committed team that will keep us going into the future, whatever it looks like! People like David Hanson as the incoming chapter president.  Mike Hill will still be doing meticulous work on the 2021 safety conference, Patti McGuire will keep being the incredible treasurer that amazes with her work, Roy Harper will stay on diligently producing meeting minutes while staying after his education, and David Spence is staying at the helm of bringing quality technical programing for our general meetings. We will see new board members coming on board as well: Ross Olsen, from Linde Group, will be heading up governmentalaffairs and Kyle Valley, from Boise Cascade, will be doing his part to help the chapter’s communications be delivered in a timely and accurate way as we are accustomed to because of Mike Hill’s efforts! What about Amy Stonehill? Well, she has done an amazing job with membership activities, and we hope she can continue as she makes changes in her job outlook!  

I am truly blessed to have served and worked with such outstanding people of action.We are in great hands, and I can hardly wait to see what this team brings in the 2020/2021 chapteryear. I will still attend the board meetings as the past president, so I will get to see the team in action as they lead the way!

In these challenging times, keep your heads up and look for the exciting efforts and leadership that is taking place around you—and then join in!
 
 
Chris Lawrence
President, ASSP – Southern Oregon Chapter
 
​With over 20 years in occupational safety and health, Chris Lawrence is a retired US Air Force Safety Professional who is the Regional Safety Manager for Boise Cascade.

20 years ago, when my husband, myself and our two kids were at Bandon Beach on a family vacation, I learned the hard way how dangerous beaches can be for children.
Back then, our daughter, Hailey, was six years old. At the beach, this high-spirited little girl turned into an exuberant water nymph, kicking and frolicking at the edge of the waves. She was in her element and I always breathed a sigh of relief because, finally, here was a wild energy that matched her own.
Our son, Kai, was a new walker — a sweet chubby toddler — who we had thoroughly bundled up against the elements. He was happily walking along, with stiff arms and legs, as best he could.
With so much space and a long view, we relaxed and gave the kids free rein to run around.
But when we turned around — Kai had disappeared.
We heard Hailey screaming from a short way down the beach. Next, we saw our beautiful fearless daughter plunge into a deep moat circling a large rock and fish little Kai out by his coat collar, dragging him onto the sand. He had gone in over his head – and sunk like a rock.
We ran over, bundled up our two soggy kids in beach towels and carried them up to the car. For a moment, my husband’s and my eyes met — sharing a silent terror – the grim knowledge that, had Hailey not seen Kai, we might not have found him in time.
This is not one of those stories that you laugh about later. This is the story that you don’t want to remember because it leaves you chilled to the bone with “what ifs?”
I offer this to you as a cautionary tale.
We are lucky in Southern Oregon to be able to visit and enjoy beautiful beaches so close to home. Although we don’t usually think about it, those beaches can be surprisingly dangerous. My husband and I thought we were good attentive parents, but it only took a moment on a beach for it to nearly claim our son’s life.
I have culled some Oregon Beach Safety Tips from several sources listed below for more extensive and comprehensive lists.
​

• Never take your eyes off children while on a beach. Supervise them closely. (A lesson I learned almost too late!)
• Beware of sneaker waves. Sneaker waves can appear suddenly without warning and they roll up onto the beach quickly and with a deadly force.
• Don’t turn your back on the ocean.
• If you see a log in the surf or on wet sand, stay clear of it. The ocean can roll a log on top of you and even tiny logs can weigh tons because they are waterlogged.
• The ocean in Oregon is normally 55 degrees Fahrenheit or colder.  Wear a wet suit when swimming to avoid hypothermia, which can set in within minutes.
• If bonfires are allowed, never extinguish them by covering them with sand. Fire can smolder unseen under the sand and later beach visitors can fall through into them and burn their feet and legs.
• Avoid climbing on rocks, jetties and headlands. Tides and waves can sweep up, knock you over and carry you out to sea. Be especially careful during storms.
• Standing at the base of overhanging ocean side cliff can be dangerous because of the chance of slides and collapse. Don´t climb on bluffs and eroding hillsides.
• Know your tides. Here is a tide table website.
• Rip currents are strong currents of water that rush out to sea. They are stronger than even the best swimmer. They can sweep unwary beachcombers and waders off their feet and out to sea. Any time you see debris and foam floating out to sea, chances are you have found a rip current. Avoid the area. If caught in a rip current, don’t panic . Swim parallel to the beach until you are out of the current, then head for the beach.

Here are some resources with comprehensive beach safety tips:
Oregon Coast Visitors Association:http://visittheoregoncoast.com/beach-safety/
Oregon Parks and Recreation: State Parks:https://www.oregon.gov/OPRD/PARKS/Pages/beach_safety.aspx
American Red Cross:http://www.redcross.org/get-help/how-to-prepare-for-emergencies/types-of-emergencies/water-safety/beach-safety
 
Betsy Lewis