Tree trimming companies should perform hazard assessments before allowing a worker to begin a task, according to investigators who looked into the electrocution death of a tree trimmer working in the backyard of a private residence. The incident in California was unwitnessed, but occurred while the tree trimmer was trimming palm trees that were in close proximity to a utility power pole and high voltage lines.

A teenager loses control of a ladder – and loses his life. The FDA gets an “F” when it comes to controlling tobacco use among young people. OSHA’s final injury and illness reporting rule gets challenged in court. These were among the top stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

A 16-year-old roofer was killed last year in Kentucky when he lost control of a 25-foot ladder and it made contact with a 7200-volt electric power line, according to Fatality Assessment & Control Evaluation (FACE) by the Kentucky Injury Prevention and Research Center. The incident occurred at a private residential home, when the victim was trying to position an aluminum extension ladder against a roof.

A foodborne illness outbreak, a worker fatality at a car dealership and the first-ever public agenda issued by AIHA were among the top occupational safety and health stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

OSHA has cited Maryland-based contractor Power Factor LLC for exposing workers to electrical hazards after an employee was fatally electrocuted while installing solar panels on a building in Fort Riley, Kansas. Inspectors determined that the employee was hoisting a metal rail that came into contact with energized overhead power lines.

Despite fluctuations from year to year, the number of fatal electrical injuries experienced by contract workers has followed an upward direction, according to a report by released by the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) and written by Richard Campbell using data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics’ (BLS) Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries.

A utilities worker in Bristol, Tennessee was injured by an arc flash Monday morning while working in a lift bucket truck.

The Washington Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) fined Grant County Public Utility District #2 $35,000 for five serious safety violations after investigating an explosion at its Priest Rapids Dam on the Columbia River in Beverly, Wash. Six workers were hospitalized with serious electrical burns after the explosion.

On May 26, 2003, a crew of electricians and utilities personnel for Patrick Cudahy, Inc., had completed an annual cleaning of electrical utilization substations #1 and #2 within the company food processing facilities.

When someone suffers an electrical shock, they actually are – at that moment – part of an electrical circuit. The severity of the injuries they sustain depends on three primary factors: the amount of current flowing through the body (measured in amperes); the path of the current through the body and the length of time the body is in the circuit.