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On Workplace Accidents

Njoroge's son had an accident today. One that could have turned fatal had he not had the helmet on. He fell from the crane's boom that had a fault. One thing that is for sure is there is a thin line between life and death. Two years ago, I lost a very close friend to an accident so I know the seriousness of accidents and near misses especially in construction. 
According to data from the Directorate of Occupational Safety and Health (DOSH),237 accidents were recorded in a 4-year period,32of which were fatalities. This data analysis was done in a new study on the safety of construction sites in Nairobi published in the American Journal of Construction and Building materials. Many other studies have been conducted and the facts are relatively similar. Here is my two cents:
1. Wear appropriate PPE whenever you can and adhere to the safety guidelines provided in the toolbox talks and on the site signages. The directorate of occupational safety and health has a reason why they are required
2. If you can, avoid working in risky places or report any potential hazards, one day you might get credit for being a hard worker who doesn't get stopped by minor inconveniences but another day you might break a leg or worse, die.
3. There is tomorrow. In the aforementioned data, there was something about a rush to meet deadlines. Work hard but take note of the body and how it reacts because fatigue has been listed as one of the other causes of workplace accidents
4. Site occupiers should try their level best to be in compliance with health and safety guidelines from OSH to help reduce near misses, accidents and even fatalities
Njoroge junior was badly hurt but the timely ambulance and rescue team made sure he didn't get worse. This morning, he talked about the whole occurence and how blur it was. Njoroge has been telling people the story of his son's miraculous escape from death for the past two days and I'm pretty sure he will be telling it for the next few months because it was a lucky escape.

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