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Accident/Incident: Mossel Bay Municipality. Accident occurred during July 2006.
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Accident/Incident: Mossel Bay Municipality. Accident occurred during July 2006
A Senior Electrician from the Mossel Bay Municipality, Eastern Region sustained serious injury (broken leg, ribs and punctured bowel) when he fell to the ground whilst replacing a low voltage distribution box on a wooden pole, which broke at the base. The wooden pole, which forms part of an ABC strain assembly was also supported by a stay wire which sheared at a weak point. The electrician worked on the same pole a week prior to the incident and therefore misjudged the integrity of the wooden pole and stay wire which are erected on an island where the water table is high. Description of events
An investigation has revealed as follows: • A week prior to the incident the electrician worked on the same pole and tapped the pole with a mallet to ascertain whether the inner core of the pole had decayed. As he did not hear a hollow sound from the pole, he assumed that the pole was healthy. • The electrician neglected to examine the condition of the stay wire as it was covered with creepers. It was discovered that the stay wire had deteriorated extensively and was on the brink of failure.
Lessons from this incident • A decayed pole in a water logged environment may not give off a hollow sound when tapped with a mallet. • Employees should be constantly alert of hidden defects. A corroded stay wire amongst vegetation is a potentially dangerous condition.
