Electrical Safety

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• Electrical Safety

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Electrical Safety
Electricity is an important part of our modern
world and sometimes it is easy to forget just how
dangerous it can be. Given the correct
circumstances, electricity can cause serious
injuries or even death. 
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Electrical Safety

• Electrocution is the cause of 12 of all
  workplace deaths among young workers.
• Electrocution is the third leading cause of
  work-related deaths among 16 and 17-year-olds.

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Electrical Injuries

• The most common types of electrical injuries are

• Electrical shock
• Electrocution (death due to
• electrical shock)
• Burns
• Falls

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Electrical Shock

• Touching a live wire and an electrical ground
  will cause a shock.

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Electrical Shock
Touching two live wires of different voltages
will cause electrical shock.
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Electrical Shock

• The severity of the shock depends on
• Path of the current through your body
• Amount of current flowing
• through your body
• Length of time your body is in contact with the
  circuit

LOW VOLTAGE DOES NOT MEAN LOW HAZARD
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Burns
Burns are the most common injury caused by
electricity. The three types of burns are

• Electrical burns
• Arc burns
• Thermal contact burns

Electrical burns can occur when you come into
direct contact with electricity.
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Burns
An arc occurs when there is a gap between
conductors and current travels through the air.

• Electrical burns
• Arc burns
• Thermal contact burns

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Burns

• Thermal contact burns can occur when electricity
  ignites combustible material.
• Electrical burns
• Arc burns
• Thermal contact burns

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Falls

• Another common type of electrical injury is
  falling.
• Workers who experience a shock on elevated work
  surfaces such as platforms, ladders or scaffolds
  can fall resulting in serious injury or death.

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Electrical Hazards

• To avoid injuries, you should be aware of
  electrical hazards. Some of the most common
  electrical hazards are

• Exposed electrical parts
• Overloaded circuits
• Defective insulation
• Improper grounding
• Damaged power tools
• Overhead power lines
• Wet conditions

Lets take a closer look at each of these hazards.
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Exposed Electrical Parts

• Exposed electrical parts can include
• Breaker boxes without a cover
• Electrical terminals in motors, appliances, and
  electronic equipment

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Overloaded Circuits

• Overloading a circuit increases the potential for
• fires to occur. Overload hazards exist if
• Too many devices are plugged into a circuit
• The wire insulation melts
• An improper overcurrent protection
  device is used
• No overcurrent protection device
  is used

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Overloaded Circuits

• Overcurrent protection devices include
• Circuit breakers

• Fuses
• Ground fault circuit interrupters (GFCI)

A circuit breaker automatically trips and shuts
off the current in a circuit if it becomes
overloaded.
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Overloaded Circuits

• A fuse contains an internal part that melts and
  shuts off the current if there is an overload.
• Circuit breakers
• Fuses

• Ground fault circuit interrupters

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Overloaded Circuits

• A ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) detects
  current leaking from a circuit to ground and
  shuts the current off.
• Circuit breakers
• Fuses
• Ground fault circuit interrupters

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Defective Insulation
To protect you, electrical wires are insulated by
a plastic or rubber covering. Insulation
prevents conductors from coming in contact with
each other and with people. Make sure the
insulation of tools and cords you are using is
not damaged.
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Grounding
When an electrical system is properly grounded,
there is a path that allows the current to travel
to the earth (the ground). When any electrical
system is not properly grounded, a hazard exists.
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Power Tools
Power tools that are damaged or not properly
maintained can cause you to be seriously
injured. If you touch a metallic part of a
power tool that is energized because of damaged
insulation or improper grounding, you could be
shocked.
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Power Tools

• To protect you from shock,
• burns and electrocution, tools
• must
• Have a three-wire cord with
• ground and be plugged into a grounded
  receptacle.
• Be double insulated.
• Be powered by a low-voltage
• isolation transformer.

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Overhead Power Lines
Overhead power lines are not usually insulated,
and cause more than half of all electrocutions.
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Wet Conditions

• Wet conditions are hazardous because you can
  become an easy path for electrical current.
• There are many circumstances that create wet
  conditions
• Standing in water
• Wet clothing
• High humidity
• Perspiration

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Safe Work Practices

• You can StartSafe and StaySafe by using
• the following safe work practices

• Inspect cords before each use
• Never overload a circuit
• Stay away from all
• unguarded conductors
• To unplug, pull on the plug, not the cord
• Dont wear jewelry or use other metal objects
  around electrical equipment

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Safe Work Practices Training
Training concerning electricity is very
important. Training for employees working with
electrical equipment must include how to

• De-energize the equipment
• Use lockout and tag procedures
• Use insulating protective equipment
• Maintain a safe distance from energized parts
• Use appropriate PPE

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Safe Work Practices Lockout/Tagout

• When performing lockout/tagout on circuits,
  trained employees will do the following

• Turn off the power supply
• Put a lock on all power sources
• to the circuit
• Apply a tag
• Test the circuit

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Summary
It is very important to StartSafe and StaySafe
around electricity. In order to do so

• Know the hazards
• Plan your work and plan for safety
• Avoid wet working conditions and other dangers
• Avoid overhead power lines
• Use proper wiring and connectors
• Use and maintain tools properly
• Wear the correct PPE for the job