09
For all the latest energy safety news visit www.esv.vic.gov.au
Summer/Autumn 2017
energysafe issue 46
Man lucky to be alive after shock
By Vanessa Garbett, Compliance Officer
ESV recently attended a serious incident at
a warehouse in Scoresby where a registered
electrical contractor (REC) was lucky not to
lose an arm.
The man received severe burns while
attempting to repair a roller door motor. Within 10
minutes of arriving, and before he even had the
chance to carry out any repairs or investigate the
fault, he was taken away in an ambulance .
So what went wrong ?
When I looked at the switchboard (SB) I
couldn’t understand why it hadn’t been isolated.
I indentifed what was labelled as a main switch
and initially assumed the SB could be isolated
from here. The scene appeared as though the
REC was removing or affixing the escutcheon
panel from one of the SB enclosures when he was
injured.
On further investigation, I realised there was
no isolation available for the enclosure when the
incident occurred. The main switch I observed
was for a sub-switchboard located elsewhere in
the warehouse.
The labelling on the SB was also incorrect
and misleading.
Although he didn’t know it at the time, the
substation/transformer, which was accessible only
by the distribution business (DB), was the single
place that effective isolation could have been
carried out.
The only protection upstream of the SB
enclosure were the fuses on the high voltage side
of the substation transformer.
The REC intended to inspect the SB with
the escutcheon off and hadn’t commenced any
electrical work when the incident occurred.
While it is a serious concern that the SB was
not isolated prior to removal of the escutcheon, it
would be difficult to expect the DB’s involvement
in every step of potential fault-finding (isolating,
re-energising, isolating), due to the poor design of
the SB.
This incident highlighted the following issues:
» » the REC was working alone. Fortunately, a
security guard at a neighbouring property was
able to assist the injured worker
» » no risk assessment had taken place
» » the SB and electrical installation were in
very poor condition and not adequately
maintained. The SB design did not take into
account safe access or maintenance
» » the potential fault current at the SB was very
large as the substation (transformer from HV
to LV) was directly behind the switchboard on
the other side of the wall.
This was an accident waiting to happen and
the REC is lucky to be alive.
When I interviewed him, he expressed his
horror at what had happened and was extremely
relieved that he had not lost his arm in the
incident.
He was concerned about the lack of
maintenance and poor design of the SB, and the
inability to effectively isolate.
Following his close call, the REC has
implemented new procedures to risk assess
where old and poorly maintained installations are
concerned and in future will call the DB to isolate
without hesitation.
Be aware of the potential risks posed by old
and poorly maintained electrical installations.
Always take the time to risk assess and call
the DB if necessary.
Don’t take chances.
If it means work has to be rescheduled
so that you can work safely – so be it.
Your life is worth taking the time to
adequately risk assess to ensure that you
approach the job safely.