Four Minutes: Life and Death in Confined Spaces
An employee of D&D Construction in California entered a drainage shaft to clean out mud and debris. The worker descended 10 feet down into the shaft via a bucket. He didn’t realize it, but he was descending into a hazardous atmosphere.
The worker was not wearing a self-contained breathing apparatus or personal fall protection as the bucket lowered him down into the shaft, which was 4.5 ft. in diameter and lined with concrete. As it turns out, there was not enough oxygen in the shaft to support life and because he was not wearing a self-contained breathing apparatus, the worker asphyxiated. He lost consciousness due to the oxygen-deficient atmosphere in the confined space and fell 40 feet, drowning in a foot of water at the bottom of the shaft.
800-ICW-SAFETY (800.429.7233)
SAFETYOnDemand@icwgroup.com
