The amount of news which streams daily on the Internet can be completely overwhelming. It can be difficult to know what information is relevant and why. For example, in late August, a company which produces safety signs issued a press release related to their newest product: signs designed to mark dangerous excavations and open pits. Why would something like this matter enough to qualify as important news?
What many Americans may not realize is that construction accidents resulting from trenching and falls into open areas of work sites are quite preventable, yet astoundingly common. This company’s press release highlights an important fact: construction operations require many different kinds of precautions in order to keep workers and passers-by safe and secure.
According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, hundreds of workers are injured and dozens die annually from accidents which occur when trenches or excavations cave-in. Astonishingly, more than two-thirds of these cave-ins occur at depths lower than 10 feet. Even in small operations, the impact of caving debris can injure or kill workers even at these depths.
Protective systems can help to prevent cave-ins and signage can help to protect both workers and the general public from approaching a site without proper equipment and knowledge of how to proceed safely.
Even though notice that a company is producing safety signs may seem unimportant, the underlying issues that this notice seeks to address are critical to workers across the nation. It may be wise to think twice before passing seemingly trivial safety news by.
Source: Virtual Strategy, “MySafetySign.com Announces New Open Trench Signs to Prevent Accidents,” Aug. 21, 2012