Give Jacks, Lifts, And Hoists The High Safety Priority They Deserve Stats and Facts
FACTS
- The hazards associated with the use of hoisting equipment in construction or other maritime operations are:
- Workers may be crushed by moving objects when vehicles or equipment aren’t properly secured
- Hoists may tip and fall when fixation bases aren’t properly secured, or because of strong winds or imbalanced loads
- Personnel may fall from hoisting platforms or be struck when the hoisting platform moves
- Workers may experience musculoskeletal damage related to force exertions, poor ergonomic postures, and/or repetitive work hazards
STATS
JACKS
- 4,822 people in the U.S. receive hospital emergency treatment in a single year for jack failure injuries.
- 82% of those injured in jack collapses were between 15 and 45 years of age. Only 2% were below the age of 15.
- 39% of the most severe injuries were to the hand, finger, or wrist. Another 17% of the most severe wounds were sustained on the upper trunk of the body, with another 15% to the head, neck, or face.
LIFTS
- Incidents involving lifts kill about 30 and seriously injure about 17,000 people each year, according to B.L.S. and the CPSC. Lifts or elevators cause almost 90 % of the deaths and 60 % of serious injuries.
- Injuries to people working on or near elevators – including those installing, repairing, and maintaining elevators, and working in or near elevator shafts – account for 14 (almost half) of the annual deaths
HOISTS
From 2011 to 2017, the Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) reported 297 total hoist-related deaths, an average of 42 per year over this 7-year period. Men accounted for 293 of the 297 fatal injuries involving hoists. White, non-Hispanic workers accounted for 72 % of fatal injuries involving hoists, while 15 % involved Hispanic and Latino workers.