Serious leg injury caused by high-pressure washer

Workers in a shipyard company were using a high-pressure water jet (250 bar) to clean the vessel thruster grating on the dock floor.

The worker using the high-pressure lance pressed the trigger to engage it.

The surge in water pressure caused him to step back and turn to his left to regain his footing.

The lance turned with the worker as he moved and inadvertently sprayed the supervisor behind him.

The supervisor received a cut to his upper right thigh requiring several stitches and hospitalisation.

The worker did not install barriers around his working area.

The supervisor failed to enforce the use of barriers on the dock bottom. The use of barriers was required by the task risk assessment (TRA).

The supervisor placed himself in the line of fire by approaching the worker from behind (without the worker’s knowledge).

Take appropriate time for ‘time out for safety’ (TOFS) discussions.

Ensure all site TRAs involving high-pressure equipment include appropriate barriers to prevent access to non-essential personnel.

Check that those supervising understand that they are non-essential personnel during the task.

Confirm that all workers using high-pressure equipment are competent to do so.

Workers should use appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE), rated to the pressure of equipment in use.

All vessels in dry dock should have:

• a formal plan to restrict access to the dock bottom.
• barriers in place where there are identified hazards on the dock floor.

Have you or a colleague ever been involved in an incident like this? What happened?

What is the safe way to perform a high-pressure wash? Think of barriers, PPE, your position, your colleagues’ position and other safety measures.

What would you do if non-essential people came into your work area during a high-pressure jetting operation?

Do you feel confident manoeuvring pressurised equipment? What should you do if not?

What kind of PPE should you wear for this job?