Overhead Hazards
On a construction job site, workers are subjected to many different hazards and safety concerns every day. A hazard that some often forget about can be found above their heads. Overhead hazards are dangerous and often overlooked. Some overhead hazards include dropped objects, powerlines, and fixed objects. This goes for workers on the ground, operators in equipment, and dump trucks on site.
- If you see something that could be an overhead hazard, eliminate the hazard. You could do this by picking up tools and materials that you see on an upper level.
- If you see an overhead hazard such as power lines, try to move to an area where they are not present.
- Always wear your PPE, including your hard hat, when you are in an area that could have falling objects and overhead hazards.
- Never walk under a piece of equipment that has a load suspended. Equipment can fail unexpectedly, and some could be an operator error.
- Monitor and try to limit the tasks you have to do that put you in the way of overhead hazards.