Fall Protection and the Communication Tower Industry - Term Paper Example

Fall Protection and the Communication Tower Industry al Affiliation Fall Protection and the Communication Tower Industry Introduction The technological advancements that have occurred over the last few decades have revolutionized the world in a big way. The technological advancement has revolutionized particularly the communication industry. Today, most Americans own a cell phone for communication (Knutson, 2013). However, most Americans are not aware of all the work and risks that engineers put themselves in order for people to receive the cell phone services. Normally, in order for people to receive cell phone services, several cell phone towers are erected in different regions in the country and the world over. The cell phone towers are constructed and maintained by engineers to ensure that people receive strong cell phone signals. However, research shows that climbing the cell towers is a risky undertaking to engineers. A research conducted by PBS Frontline (2012) showed that workers at cell towers are at a greater risk of dying due to falls. The research found that the death rate attributable to falls from cell towers is more than 10 times higher than in conventional construction industry. The numbers of deaths attributable to falls from cell towers have been on the rise following the increased clamor for modern cell phone networks. Knutson (2013) reveals that more than 10 cell tower workers have died this year alone. Their deaths have been occasioned by accidental falls from tall cell towers. A survey also show that a majority of those who survive cell tower fall end up with serious injuries, including back injuries, broken limbs and head injuries. In fact, this year alone, at least three people have suffered serious injuries after falling from cell towers. This is an indication that much needs to be done to boost the safety of cell tower workers. Improving safety will help reduce the number of falls from cell towers. Case Involving Cell Tower Accident November 13, 2013 was one of the darkest days in the cell tower industry. This follows the death of a 27-year old tower technician after succumbing to injuries he sustained when he fell from about 340-feet tower in Wichita, Kan. His death marked the thirteenth death attributed to falls from cell tower in the year 2013. The cell tower technician identified as Douglas Klein, a resident of New Jersey-New York metropolitan area accidentally fell down from a 340-feet tower. Report indicates that Klein together with three other colleagues had been troubleshooting an equipment failure on SBA communication structure. However, at around 5.20 pm, as they were climbing down after solving the problem, he accidentally slid and fell to the ground. Report indicates that, at the time of the accident, Klein had been tied off at the safety climb cable at about 60-foot level. Klein suffered serious injury sustained after hitting an ice bridge post. Emergency teams around minutes later and rushed him to Saint Francis Hospital where he passed on due to the severe injuries he suffered (Inside Towers, 2013). Causative Factors Associated with Klein’s Cell Tower Accident Klein did not fall by choice; rather, the fall was attributable to a number of factors. Firstly, unconfirmed reports suggest that Klein might have fallen due to the failure of his safety equipment (Inside Towers, 2013). Many falls that have happened in the past have been attributed to the failure of the safety climb cable. In this regard, it is possible that the equipment failure will have contributed to Klein’s fall from the cell tower. The fall may also have occurred because Klein was making a shortcut. Unconfirmed report suggests that Klein might have fell after disconnecting his safety equipment in an attempt to get past an obstruction (Inside Towers, 2013). Normally, some workers tend to disconnect their safety equipment whenever there is an obstruction they want to go past. However, some workers like Klein are normally not lucky as they slid in the process, resulting in falls. Klein must also have fell because of having made an abrupt stop, while climbing down the cell tower. Evident has shown that a worker can easily fall from a cell tower in case he or she makes an abrupt stop. This is attributable to the fact that an abrupt stop normally causes a worker to bounce, thereby disengaging the worker from the tower, resulting in a fall. Lack of climbing experience has also been a major cause of cell tower accidents in the United States. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) requirements, cell tower workers must have enough experience through training before being handed the job of climbing towers (McDonald, 2013). However, in this case, Klein appeared to lack the climbing experience, according to knowledgeable sources. As such, lack of climbing experience might have contributed significant to his cell tower fall. At the time of the accident, Klein was an employee of PinPoint whose office is based in Omaha, Neb. However, the crew had been contracted by Ericsson to work on Sprint Network vision project where the accident occurred. Subsequent investigations conducted after the accident revealed that Klein had been working for PinPoint for only 3 weeks (Inside Towers, 2013). The investigation also discovered that the victim lacked even the climber-training certificate for his employer. This makes one to conclude that lack of climbing experience might have significantly contributed to Klein’s fall. Fall Protection Program Developed To Suit the Cell Tower Work Falls from cell towers are on the rise in the United States. However, the number of falls from cell towers can easily be avoided if proper protection programs are put in place. One of the OSHA requirements is that all companies involved in cell tower construction and maintenance must adhere to the safety standards (Knutson, 2013) Therefore, the development of the following safety programs can help reduce accidents resulting from cell tower falls. Firstly, before workers climb a cell tower, a pre-plan climb and assessment will be performed by a competent supervisor on site to ensure that all attachment spots and stable and secured. This will help minimize chances of an employee falling due to lack of stability of attachment points (McDonald, 2013). Secondly, workers will be provided with adequate training on fall protection policies. This is to ensure that all workers involved in the construction and maintenance of understand safety requirements and policies while climbing or working on the cell tower. Thirdly, the safety program will involve providing workers will all the safety equipments, including climbing belts to prevent them from falling. In addition, before an employee climbs the cell tower, there will be a competent supervisor onsite to ensure that an employee adhere to the safety requirements. Lastly, the company will ensure that emergency equipment is available onsite to ensure that workers who fall accidentally receive treatment in the fasted time possible. This will include employing a company doctor, as well as putting in place a standby ambulance. Conclusion Falls from cell towers is on the increase. Research has shown that deaths resulting from falls from cell towers are more than 10 times higher than those that occur on conventional constructions companies. Klein’s death is one among the many deaths that have occurred due to falls from cell towers. However, the most surprising thing is that falls from towers are avoidable when adequate safety programs are put in place. In this regard, it is important for the cell tower construction and maintenance companies to ensure that the OSHA safety requirements are complied with as a means of boosting safety of workers. Among the safety, programs that need to be instituted to prevent falls from cell towers include training workers on fall protection, providing safety equipments, and conducting inspections before any worker can begin climbing the cell towers. In addition, cell tower construction companies must ensure that emergency services are in place to deal with any accident that might result due to falls from cell towers. References BPS Frontline (2012) Cell tower deaths. Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/cell-tower-deaths/. Inside Towers (2013). 13th tower technician fatality in 2013 occurred this weekend. Inside Towers, 1(24), 1-3. Knutson, R. (2013, Aug. 21). A new spate of deaths in the wireless industry. The Wall Street Journal, p. 12. McDonald, C. (2013). Cell tower deaths get OSHA’s attention. Retrieved from http://www.rmmagazine.com/2013/10/01/cell-tower-deaths-get-oshas-attention/. Read More