R.I. Construction Safety Day Set for Sept. 28
Enhancing safety and health for the Ocean State’s construction workers is the goal of a day-long event Wednesday, Sept. 28, at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet in Cranston.
Rhode Island Construction Safety Day will feature exhibits, interactive presentations and demonstrations focused on construction hazards and the means and equipment available to minimize and prevent them.
Indoor and outdoor demonstrations will highlight fall protection and prevention equipment, proper excavation techniques, scaffold erection, electrical safety, ladders and power tools. Attendees may observe a confined-space entry and rescue drill, become certified as a flagperson, participate in a forklift rodeo and learn how to avoid the electrical zapzone. They may also choose to visit safety equipment exhibits or climb a 20-foot rock wall – with fall protection, of course.
Ongoing risk management seminars will also be available addressing workers’ compensation, respiratory protection, commercial motor vehicles and drug- and alcohol-free workplaces. An electrical accident survivor will be on hand to share his story, and the Rhode Island Blood Bank will be on-site for those who wish to donate blood.
“This is an ambitious joint effort by business and government to provide Rhode Island’s employers with information and knowledge to better protect their workers against common and preventable construction hazards,” said Mary Hoye, Rhode Island area director for the U.S. Labor Department’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Rhode Island Construction Safety Day will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Rhodes on the Pawtuxet, 60 Rhodes Place, Cranston, R.I. The $20 entry fee will include a box lunch. To pre-register, contact Donna Deragon at (401) 454-1990.
OSHA is co-sponsoring the event with the Rhode Island chapter of the Associated General Contractors, the Rhode Island Building Construction Trades, Beacon Mutual Insurance, Feitelberg Insurance and Bonding, Liberty Mutual, G.T. Safety Products and WJAR-TV/NBC 10.