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Establishing a Confined‐Space Entry Program
Author(s) -
Robey Rod
Publication year - 1992
Publication title -
opflow
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
eISSN - 1551-8701
pISSN - 0149-8029
DOI - 10.1002/j.1551-8701.1992.tb00296.x
Subject(s) - confined space , forensic engineering , hazardous waste , space (punctuation) , falling (accident) , architectural engineering , civil engineering , mining engineering , business , engineering , environmental science , waste management , computer science , chemistry , environmental health , medicine , organic chemistry , operating system
Confined spaces can maim and kill. Injury or death can come from lack of oxygen, presence of toxic gases, fire, explosions, entrapment, electrical shock, falls, and falling objects. Establishing a program to protect the safety of workers who must enter such spaces is vitally important. This article describes the dangers of confined spaces and outlines the basic components of a safety program. Confined spaces include storage tanks, pipelines, manholes, tunnels, utility vaults, and digesters. They also include open‐top spaces greater than 4 ft deep, such as excavations, clarifiers, and sedimentation basins. An oxygen scale shows what hazardous conditions can result from low levels of oxygen in a confined space (for example, at 6 percent oxygen, death will occur within minutes).