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Working in Confined Spaces
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When a person must enter a shaft, tank or pipe to perform a work task, he or she is entering a potentially dangerous environment. Confined spaces can be risky places to work. They may lack oxygen and contain poisonous substances, making it dangerous for the worker to breathe. Sometimes, explosive or flammable gases accumulate in confined spaces without the worker realizing it, and could cause a fire or explosion if ignited. Confined spaces may be very hot or very cold, offer limited visibility, and contain various other physical, chemical, biological or electrical hazards. If the space cannot be made safe, no person should enter.
Each year, workers are injured or killed while working in confined spaces. Of particular concern are the poisonous gases in some confined spaces that can kill a person without warning. Hydrogen sulfide, for example, may be impossible to detect since at high concentrations, it reduces the person’s ability to smell the tell-tale rotten egg odour of this gas. Too often the victim count is increased because someone has entered a confined space in an attempt to save a co-worker who has fallen unconscious or is in some other danger. These would-be rescuers often succumb to the hazardous conditions themselves, and represent an estimated 60 percent of fatalities in confined spaces. Such was the case in the recent fatalities at the Sullivan lead-zinc Mine in British Columbia in which 2 of the 4 dead were paramedics.
Working in a confined space requires special training. For example it also requires a good understanding of gas monitoring, ventilation systems, fire and explosion prevention, equipment lockout, and a thorough knowledge of the worksite’s specific hazards.
More information on how to develop a confined space health and safety program
Read more about managing the risks from confined spaces
Read the CHEMINFO record for specific hazards of Hydrogen Sulfide
Coming this fall: CCOHS’ e-course on Confined Spaces
July 2006
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