Unsafe conditions by themselves are not necessarily a threat. The actions you take (or don’t take) in response determine whether a safety problem exists. Consider these examples:
- Your helper obtained a ladder that is too short for the job and set it up at an unsafe angle. This poses no threat to you if you replace the ladder. Leaving that ladder in place creates an unsafe condition; using it is an unsafe act.
- Yet again, office personnel stored paper filing boxes and fluorescent lamps in the main electrical closet. Performing any work in this room before removing these items is an unsafe act.
- Something that is often not understood is the fact that a locked out breaker constitutes an unsafe condition until a power check is performed to verify there’s no backfeed or other energy supplied to that breaker.
- Industrial machinery isn’t safe to work on until all energy sources are identified and isolated, not just the electrical ones.
Assess all potential threats before working.
