The construction industry has an alarming record of accidents every year. Some accidents result in minor injuries, while others are critical, often resulting in death. Often, carelessness and a lack of expertise are the common causes of construction accidents. However, there is another dangerous factor that can change the life of an affected victim forever—dangerous equipment.
Here are eight types of construction equipment that cause the highest number of accidents in the construction industry:
1. Cranes
You will find a crane on almost every construction site. They do all the heavy lifting and moving. Efficiency and versatility aside, cranes pose quite a risk to site workers.
There have been instances where they collapsed while transporting materials or even other equipment. Considering their massive size, it’s safe to say that the victims were dealt a heavy blow.
Electrocution can also occur when parts of the crane come into contact with high-tension power lines.
2. Bulldozers
Everyone around a bulldozer stands at risk of harm if any mishap occurs. It can crush structures as well as people if it is not handled properly. Also, the loud noises that emanate from these machines can affect the hearing abilities of those who are exposed to them for a prolonged period of time.
However, accidents can be minimized if a skilled driver is made to handle this machinery.
3. Scaffolding
The mere height of scaffolds is enough reason to consider them dangerous. Unfortunately, it is almost impossible to avoid one of these on a construction site.
If these scaffolds are not properly set up and maintained, anyone who goes up on them faces the risk of collapsing alongside them, slipping, falling, and even dying. Unfortunately, the rate of fatalities that result from scaffolding each year is dangerously alarming.
4. Ladders
Portable ladders can be found all over a construction site, even though they account for 22% of fatal and non-fatal site accidents. One fall from a ladder is all it takes to completely incapacitate a site worker.
Most accidents occur because the ladders were not properly inspected before use. Regardless of what materials they were made with, ladders can weaken over time. This is to say that, with proper inspection, all the risks associated with using a ladder can be completely avoided.
5. Forklifts
Forklifts are the big boys that do all the heavy lifting in factories and warehouses, but they can also be the big bullies that get you maimed if you do not handle them with care. Every year, over 60,000 forklift-related accidents occur, and unfortunately, people don’t always make it out alive.
Now, these big boys may appear easy to handle, but behind the scenes, companies make the handlers undergo months of rigorous training before they get one of them.
6. Power Tools
When you think power tools, think drills, saws, and nail guns. These are the handy tools in the workshop that help you work with speed and ease. However, if you don’t know how to use them properly, accidents can happen.
If you use any of these tools without training, bad things could happen to you. You face the risk of serious cuts, burns, or even worse injuries.
7. Welding Equipment
When a welder does their thing, what an untrained eye sees is the seamless joining of metal pieces with sparks flying around. For a rookie, it seems too easy. Only a trained welder understands the severity of the risks they face.
Aside from the metal fumes and UV rays that can hurt their eyes, they are also in danger of burns, cuts, and even crushed limbs.
8. Excavators
Ideally, excavators are meant for digging and moving big materials around. However, they can cause severe damage to a site.
If an inexperienced driver is left in charge of an excavator, they may either ram it into a structure or even harm a bystander.
On its own, an excavator can also tip over. This is very likely to happen if it is parked on a slope.
Final Thoughts
Construction machinery brings ease and efficiency to a construction site. But, at the same time, they can also bring pain, harm, damage, and even death.
To avoid all of these, safety measures must be put in place at all times. And, of course, only trained individuals should be allowed to handle them.
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