An electrical lineman was blasted earlier this year with thousands of volts of electricity and died of his injuries in North Carolina. T.C. Simpsom was working on a power line in the Mulberry community of Wilkes County, about 80 miles northwest of Winston-Salem, when the accident happened. He died after spending two days in critical condition.

Numbers from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics put electrical line workers among the top ten most dangerous jobs in the United States. The job of a lineman is fraught with dangers. Utilities are targeting a zero fatality rate, but about 3 million nonfatal recordable incidents were reported in 2014.

An electrical contractor recently celebrated reaching the milestone of one-million safe working hours. Wayland, Michigan-based Windemuller said in August, 2018 it hit the mark without any recordable OSHA injuries as of July. The company’s streak started in May 2016.

Three University of Idaho graduates have developed a safety device that utility workers clip onto their hard hats. It beeps and flashes when workers approach a high-voltage electrical source, reducing the risk of electrocution.

A decade-old standard developed to help companies with risk management has been revised and adopted as a U.S. national standard. The new version reflects the evolution of risk management from a separate, departmentalized activity to an integrated management competency.

Most utilities recognize drones can play a role in expediting inspection of infrastructure like transmission lines. Utilities deploy drones after major events, too, such as floods, hurricanes and tornadoes. Industry experts believe within a few years, linemen will carry drones in their trucks and use them like other high-tech tools such as handheld thermal scanners.

A shortage of skilled workers is the number one factor affecting jobsite safety, according to a report by the Q3 2018 USG Corporation + U.S. Chamber of Commerce Commercial Construction Index (Index). The report revealed a widespread concern among commercial construction businesses about anticipated labor shortages over the next three years, with 88 percent of contractors expecting to feel at least a moderate impact from the workforce shortages in the next three years.

A construction worker was among those killed in the Cincinnati bank shooting; pedestrian fatalities in the U.S. continue to increase and some surprising data on young people who use marijuana every day. These were among the top stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

Human errors lead to a fatal 2017 train accident in South Dakota that killed two BNSF roadway workers, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), but the agency ultimately lays the blame on the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), for its inconsistent enforcement of federal regulations.