An Unguarded Platform, a Deep Trench and a Young Helper
On a two-storey house in Galle, a working platform stands at 3.0 m on steel scaffold tubes. The outer face has no guardrail or toe board, and one 38 mm plank is missing, leaving a 600 mm gap. A 17-year-old helper carries 200 mm blocks up a ladder and stacks them on the platform. Below, a 1.3 m deep footing trench has spoil heaped about 200 mm from its edge. Blocks are cut dry with a disc cutter and the dust blows across the site. Nobody wears eye protection, and two workers have dust masks hanging around their necks. The supervisor is off site and the client is pressing for the walls to be finished before the weekend.
1. Which hazard do you stop first, and what has to be fixed before anyone goes back up?
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Stop the work at height first. It is the hazard that can kill someone today.
- The 600 mm gap is a fall-through; the missing guardrail and toe board at 3 m is a fall-off; blocks stacked on the platform add load and can fall on the people below.
Order of actions
- Stop work and get everyone off and away from under the platform.
- Barricade the area below.
- Fit the missing plank, and install guardrail, mid-rail and toe board along the open face, tied properly to the scaffold.
- Clear the excess blocks off the platform and keep only what is needed for the lift.
- Inspect the scaffold before anyone goes back up, and record the inspection.
Hierarchy of control
- Eliminate the work at height where possible (work from inside, or use a properly erected mobile tower rather than a ladder and a makeshift platform).
- Then guardrails and a complete platform.
- PPE such as a helmet and harness is the last line, never the first. Report to the supervisor and do not restart without sign-off.
2. The trench is 1.3 m deep with spoil 200 mm from the edge. What are your concerns and what controls do you put in place?
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Concerns
- At 1.3 m a person can be buried and killed by a collapse or by falling spoil.
- Spoil 200 mm from the edge is effectively a surcharge on the trench side and will also fall back in on whoever is working.
- Loose material at the edge, water, and vibration from the mixer all worsen it.
Controls
- Move the spoil back at least 0.6 to 1.0 m from the edge and keep tools, blocks and the mixer away from the lip.
- Support or batter the sides as the soil requires; get the supervisor or engineer to decide before anyone re-enters.
- Provide a ladder for access, close to where people are working, and never climb the sides.
- Barricade or cover the trench and mark it at night; keep water out.
- Inspect the sides at the start of each shift and after rain.
- No lone working in the trench; a second person stays at the top. If the sides crack or the soil runs, stop and escalate.
3. How do you deal with the 17-year-old carrier and the dry cutting, given the supervisor is away and the client is pushing?
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The young worker
- Take him off the ladder carrying blocks straight away and give him a task that is not heavy or hazardous.
- Tell the supervisor that a 17-year-old is being used for this work; the employer or supervisor must confirm that this task is permitted for his age and provide a safe alternative. Do not leave the decision to the boy, who will not want to refuse.
Dry cutting and dust
- Prefer wet cutting or a cutter with dust extraction, or cut in a ventilated spot away from other workers.
- Masks fitted properly over the nose and mouth, not hanging round the neck; eye and hearing protection for the operator and anyone close by.
Communication and supervision
- Hold a short toolbox talk with the whole gang in the language they are comfortable in. Show them what to do, do not just tell them, and have each person repeat back the key point.
- Record what you saw, what you stopped, who you told and when; follow up with the supervisor in writing.
- If nothing is done about the platform or the young worker, escalate to the employer or the safety officer. A client deadline is not a reason to accept a fall or a collapse; stopping work and reporting it is the correct professional action, not a failure of teamwork.