November 28, 2023

Burns from fire and personal fall arrest systems

As a service to our policyholders, Texas Mutual shares serious workplace injury trends based on catastrophic injuries and fatalities reported to our claims department. Not all of these reported injuries are covered by workers’ compensation, but our goal is to help you ensure these types of incidents do not happen in your workplace. Find safety tips below to help keep your employees safe on the job.

If you have questions, we encourage you to contact our safety services support center at 844-WORKSAFE (967-5723) or safety@texasmutual.com.

In this alert:

• Burns from fire
• Personal fall arrest systems

Burns from fire

An employee was cutting a pipe with a torch. Residual oil in the pipe ignited, causing a flash fire that resulted in burns to the employee’s skin. In another incident, an employee attempted to extinguish a fire rather than evacuate the area and received severe burns.

Fire is a hazard that must be taken seriously. As unpredictable as fire can be, training employees to identify fire hazards and respond to fire emergencies can help prevent fires and protect employees from burns.

• Ensure that fire safety equipment such as fire extinguishers, sprinklers and fire alarms is maintained.
• Report any fire safety hazards to a supervisor.
• Do not try to fight a fire unless trained to do so.
• In the event of a fire emergency, follow your company’s evacuation plan.
• Wear the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) when working around flames.

Personal fall arrest systems

While working on a platform, an employee unclipped their lanyard from an anchorage point to reach for a piece of pipe. The pipe fell and struck the employee, causing them to fall off the platform. In an unrelated incident, an employee was working on a roof and fell about 20 feet to the ground. Although the employee was wearing a harness, it was not attached to an anchorage point. Both employees lost their lives as a result of their injuries.

Personal fall arrest systems (PFAS) can help to prevent serious injury or death in the event of a fall. There are different types of PFAS, so it’s important to select the right one for the job and to use it properly.

• Inspect your harness before each use, and do not attempt to repair or use it if there are signs of damage or wear.
• Wear your harness properly, ensuring it’s snug and all straps are adjusted.
• Connect the lanyard correctly to an anchorage point that has been designed and installed under the supervision of a qualified person.
• Ensure the lanyard is short enough so that you cannot free fall more than 6 feet or contact any lower level.
• Familiarize yourself with your company’s rescue plan to minimize time spent suspended in the harness in the event of a fall.

Get free safety resources

Texas Mutual policyholders have access to thousands of free training materials in our multimedia safety resource center, including our safety catalog with up-to-date resources.

To access the free materials, log in to your texasmutual.com account and select Safety. If you need help accessing the safety resource center or you have a workplace safety question, call us toll-free at 844-WORKSAFE (967-5723).

Download a PDF (172KB) version of the November Safety Alert.