Occupational Injuries in Work Zones

The following statistics were found at Workzonesafety.org under occupational injuries in work zones. 

Fatal occupational injuries at road construction sites:

          total     highest state    

2007   106          Texas 16

2008   101          Texas 13

2009   116          TX 11 FL 11

2010   106          Illinois 12

2011   119          Texas 13

Maryland - 0 over the same 5 year span

Fatal occupational injuries at road construction sites by select characteristics:

          wage and salary  self-employed

2007            105                    0

2008              98                    3

2009            111                    5

2010            101                    5

2011            112                    7

             women     men

2007          3           103

2008          3             98

2009          7           109

2010          0           106

2011          7           112

             white     black     hispanic

2007        71           14            17

2008        68           10            23

2009        78            7             27

2010        76           14            15

2011        74           12            31

Worst month for fatalities: June

Worst day of the week: Tuesday

This page includes data and information on fatal occupational injuries at road construction sites. For all fatalities in motor vehicle traffic crashes in work zones, visit the Work Zone Fatalities page and choose your year.

Fleece Lined Bomber Jacket The fleece lined bomber jacket features a durable, waterproof shell with a fleece liner and fleece lined hood. In addition to the high visibility color material, the jacket also utilizes black material in the areas which most commonly get dirty - helping the jacket maintain a bright and clean appearance. The fleece lined hood is both removable and can also be hidden. Other features of the jacket include: 2" wide 3M Scotchlite reflective material, right chest wallet pocket, left chest radio pocket, zipper slash side pockets and drawstring hood. Available in high visibility Lime and Orange; sizes M-5XL. ANSI/ISEA Class 3 compliant.

Neither Funny nor Ironic: Construction Worker Killed While Putting up Safety Signs

It's all too common these days, and the media does the issue no justice to make light of it by attaching a funny or ironic headline. A 27-year-old highway construction worker was killed when police say he was trying to put up road safety signs for an expansion of a Texas highway.

No mention was made as to whether he was wearing the proper hi-visibility attire, including hi-vis vest, high visibility apparel or garments, reflectors or any other hi visibility gear - which usually means that he was. otherwise, they'd be having a field day with that fact also. As of yet, the only good news seems to be that there was no error of his own - just a fatal accident.

The accident happened around 8:30 in the morning in Conroe, Texas on Saturday, October 27th, off of the I-45 feeder road near State Highway 105. Police say a Williams Brothers construction truck was pulling an 18-foot trailer loaded with highway safety signs. The truck was stopped in the left lane just south of the exit ramp from I-45. A highway road worker, Joel Vega, was putting temporary caution signs along the roadside for drivers before their work began. But Kimberly Vick, 39, traveling southbound on the feeder, also on the left lane, struck the trailer, flipping it.

Investigators believe Vega was between the truck and trailer when the accident happened. Unfortunately, Vega was pronounced dead on the scene by police. They're now trying to figure out if the driver was able to see the caution arrows on top of the truck.

As of yet, no cause of the accident has been determined. Vick was transported to Conroe Regional Medical Center. It is “too early to tell” if charges will be filed against Vick, Conroe Police Sgt. Joe Smart said, and the case is under investigation. No citations have been issued in the wreck.

OSHA has opened an investigation with Williams Brothers, which on its website counts TxDOT as its principal client, OSHA spokesman Juan Rodriguez said Monday. The investigation is ongoing.

Officials with Williams Brothers were unavailable for comment.

Brilliant Series Breakaway Class 2 Vest

The Brilliant Series breakaway vests, from ML Kishigo, offer both increased visibility and protection from entanglement. In addition to the 5-point breakaway design, high visibility background material and the 2" wide reflective tape, the vest also utilizes Brilliant Trim reflective edging which considerably improves the vest's low light visibility. The reflective piping improves recognition of the wearer by distinguishing their silhouette from the other stationary objects around them in a work zone. The vest is constructed of a durable and breathable, Ultra-Cool 100% polyester mesh. Vest features include: zipper closure; mic tabs on chest; inside 2-tier, 4-division pencil pocket; flapped radio pocket; and inside left patch pocket.

ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 compliant.

Hi Visibility Safety Vests

I see safety vests everywhere, partly because they're used everywhere, but partly because I write about safety vests and I'm always on the lookout to where they're being used. The ironic thing about safety vests is, when used properly, and worn regularly, they save lives. but there's no evidence or statistics or reports that speak to, "there would have been an accident had this person not worn a safety vest." The sad thing is, people do still get hurt, and people still do die because the don't wear their safety vests. And accidents do happen that cannot be controlled. Others in the safety industry who also notice who and where hi visibility vests are being used can help by adding to the discussion. One such person is Dave Weber who writes Safety Awakenings. The following is an excerpt from a blog article he wrote entitled 6 New Uses For High Visibility Vests.

Those bright yellow and orange high visibility vests aren’t just for roadway construction crews any more. I’m seeing them worn all over the place in business and industry these days. Employers have discovered that in certain high hazard work areas, it’s a good idea to have employees wear high visibility vests to provide an extra measure of protection.
Below is a listing of six situations that I feel require the wearing of high visibility vests:

• All new production employees should be required to wear safety vests. I successfully implemented such a policy at two different companies. We required new employees to wear the safety vests during the first 30 calendar days that they worked for the company. Management did not have to enforce this policy, because the experienced employees came to believe in the policy so strongly that they enforced the rule themselves!
• Certain handicapped or disabled production employees should be required to wear safety vests. At one company I worked for we had some factory employees who were deaf. The area where they worked was extremely dangerous. If an imminent danger were to occur, the deaf workers could not hear the warning shout, the alarm, or the horn. We required the deaf employees to wear high visibility vests. The other workers would watch out for the vest wearing deaf workers and give them an extra wide berth when working near them.

You can read the rest of the article here.

HiVis Ladies Softshell Jacket

This ANSI Class 2 high visibility soft shell jacket is from Utility Pro designed and sized specifically for ladies - to ensure both comfort and safety. The jacket features a durable, 320 gram fleece bonded polymide shell with fleece lining. The shell fabric is infused with DuPont™ Teflon® fabric protector. The fabric protector helps to resist and repel water grease and mud. The jacket design includes black accents to offer an attractive look. Other features include: hidden collar hood, zippered outside pockets, zipper front closure. Available in high visibility Lime; in sizes S-2XL. ANSI/ISEA 107-2010 Class 2 compliant.
Read the entire article here.

Surveying and Publications

Surveying has often been called the 2nd oldest trade in the world, and dates back to the Egyptians in 3000 BC. Here are a couple of the major trade publications:

Professional Surveyor Magazine This publication has been around for over 30 years, and has a 30,000 subscription base. It serves the measurement and positioning community, including surveying and engineering companies; photogrammetry and aerial service firms; federal, state and municipal government; military organizations; GIS Service companies; educational institutions; utility companies; construction and mining businesses; dealers and distributors and/or developers of software, engineering and/or surveying equipment and supplies; transportation organizations (eg. D.O.T.) and others allied to the field. See the Business Publication Circulation Statement.

The American Surveyor  The American Surveyor provides readers with the latest news and developments affecting land surveyors and the measurement & positioning technologies. categories covered include events and education, business, equipment, hardware, GPS, Photogrammetry, GIS, maps, cartography and LiDAR.

Professional Surveyors Vest

The Professional Surveyors vest, from ML Kishigo, is designed to exceed the demanding needs of a highly functional surveyors vest. It is constructed with a solid polyester front /Ultra-Cool mesh back; and features a 2" 3M Scotchlite reflective material laminated to 3" contrasting color – increasing daytime visibility. Other features of the vest include: left and right mic holders; zipper front closure; two lapel grommets; reinforced webbing at high stress points; and a plush neck liner for comfort. The pockets of this surveyors vest include: left chest 2-tier pocket with dual function flap that can be held open by Velcro; large right gusseted pocket; outside lower pockets with flaps; left and right stake pockets; left and right elastic spray can pockets; lower inside left and right full length zipper pockets with load bearing straps; and a hidden back pouch with left and right zipper access. Available in high visibility Lime and Orange; sizes M-5XL. Choose from both ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 compliant and ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 3 compliant vests.

Three great HiVis Products for End of Summer

Charger Safety Glasses

The Charger safety glasses, from Bobster, feature anti-fog, polycarbonate lenses and a clean wrap around design. The durable, high-gloss, black nylon frame fits securely and comfortably, even on smaller faces. The Charger safety glasses come with a microfiber pouch for easy cleaning and storage when not being worn. ANSI Z87.1 approved.

Black Series Windbreaker

The Black Series Windbreaker by ML Kishigo is activewear inspired high-vis apparel. The windbreaker is a lightweight and flexible design, that utilizes durable, black ripstop material in high wear areas along the sides and under the arms. It also features waist cinches hidden in the front pockets - keeping a clean look. Other features of the windbreaker include: adjustable cuffs, shoulder blade vents, two outside lower pockets with zippers, left chest vertical pocket with waterproof zipper and 2' wide VizLite reflective material. Available in high visibility Lime or Orange; M-5XL. ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 3 compliant.

Professional Surveyor's Vest

The Professional Surveyors vest, from ML Kishigo, is designed to exceed the demanding needs of a highly functional surveyors vest. It is constructed with a solid polyester front /Ultra-Cool mesh back; and features a 2" 3M Scotchlite reflective material laminated to 3" contrasting color – increasing daytime visibility. Other features of the vest include: left and right mic holders; zipper front closure; two lapel grommets; reinforced webbing at high stress points; and a plush neck liner for comfort. The pockets of this surveyors vest include: left chest 2-tier pocket with dual function flap that can be held open by Velcro; large right gusseted pocket; outside lower pockets with flaps; left and right stake pockets; left and right elastic spray can pockets; lower inside left and right full length zipper pockets with load bearing straps; and a hidden back pouch with left and right zipper access. Available in high visibility Lime and Orange; sizes M-5XL. Choose from both ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 compliant and ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 3 compliant vests.

HiVis Supply is proud to offer high visibility products for a variety of job duties like roadside construction, manufacturing, plant assembly, mining, surveying, forestry, power generator construction, shipyard construction, warehouse and facility maintenance, utilities department, sewer maintenance, electrical line construction, wind energy construction, ethanol and oil refinery and many others.

Flagging for Road and Bridge Construction

Per the Florida Department of Tranportation (FDOT) regulations on road and bridge construction, contractors must provide trained flaggers "...to direct traffic where one-way operation in a single lane is in effect and in other situations as required. The Worksite Traffic Supervisor or others as approved by the Department will provide training for flaggers."

Flaggers are often the first line of defense for roadside and highway crews (see poster). Basic skills include:

• The Right Signals for stopping, alerting and allowing traffic to proceed
• The Right Gear Class II or Class III high visibility vests, shirts and foul-weather gear
• The Right Sign Spacing stopping sight distances
• The Right Setup
• The Right Practices
• stand on shoulder in clear view
• always face traffic
• use clear hand signal
• stay alert
• always stand up
• use authorized communication devices
• The Right Training Per jurisdiction

Flaggers must be trained per the MUTCD Section 6E (Flagger Control), and Design Standards Index 600 (Flagging Operations and Night Time Flagging) and (General Information for Traffic Control through Work Zones). The field demonstration shall be a dexterity test using hand-signaling devices (STOP/SLOW paddle and flag) during flagging type operations and placement of traffic control devices.

Instructors may use training videos, handouts, computer based training, or other methods to ensure that the flagger has demonstrated knowledge and proficiency in flagging operations (per FDOT). No formal submittal of this course to the MOTC for review is required. No time requirement is set for the training, but the instructor will be required to keep a record of persons they have successfully trained and the date they were trained.

Go here to order your Know Flagging poster.

Go here to order paddles.

Go to the Workzonesafety.org website for more information including their brochures and fact sheets.

Class 2 and Class 3 Vests

Black Series Heavy Duty Class 2 Vests are made of Ultra Cool™ polyester mesh and are ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 2 Compliant. Class II safety vests are designed for workers who need greater visibility in poor weather conditions, and who are exposed to roadways with traffic that exceeds 25 miles per hour.

Class II vests are ideal for railway workers, school crossing guards, parking and toll gate personnel, airport ground crews and law enforcement personnel directing traffic.

According to ANSI standards, class II vests must have 775 square in. of background material, and 201 square in. of reflective material.

Class 2 vests:

• are designed for moderate risk
• school crossings, parking lots, traffic direction
• less stringent requirements
• smaller than Class 3 vests  

Class III vests are designed to provide the highest level of visibility in extreme weather situations and around traffic going more than 50 mph. They are required to have 1,240 inches of fluorescent background fabric and 310 inches of reflective material. That much fabric is going to make one heck of big vest. That’s why the typical garment that meets the minimum Class 3 requirement is actually a short sleeve shirt with reflective tape. The difference? About 465 square inches of fluorescent material and about 109 inches of reflective tape.

Class 3 vests: 

• visibility in bad weather such as hurricanes or blizzards
• worn by emergency personnel and traffic teams working on freeways and highways
• larger than class 2 vests 

ANSI Class 3 DOT Vest

The ANSI Class 3 DOT vest, from Vinatronics, is a breathable solid polyester with combined performance 2" 3M Scotchlite reflective material. The vest is built to be durable and includes nylon webbed, reinforced snaps. Other features include: cell phone pocket; pencil pocket; two lower oversized kangaroo pockets; snap front closure; and a mic tab. Available in high visibility Orange or Yellow; sizes Small through 5XL. Made in the USA. ANSI/ISEA 107 Class 3 compliant.