Accidents to Waterside Workers.

Maoriland Worker, Volume 1, Issue 5, 20 January 1911, Page 7

Accidents to Waterside Workers.

INTERVIEW WITH A CHRISTCHURCH DOCTOR. Recently a representative of this journal had an interview Avith a Christchurch doctor on the subject of preventible accidents to waterside workers, particularly those happening to the men Avorking at Lyttelton. ■' Probably the most serious, as well as the most easily preventible kind of accident," said the doctor, " occurs through men falling from, or being knocked off, from cross-beams when battening doAvn the empty hatch. Recently I was called to see an officer injured by a sling crushing his leg against the hatch coamings. As I Avas attending to him, a man Avas knocked off one of the cross-beams by another beam being lowered into place alongside the one on which the man Avas astride. The hold was absolutely empty, so that the accident was almost immediately fatal. Yesterday I had a conversation with a man Avho has done a great deal of this AA r ork, and he considers it the most dangerous and the most easily preventible of all; most dangerous, because the hold being empty, the fall is necessarily greater; and most easily preventible because, the hold being empty, there is no inconvenience in having a net placed across before the men are allowed to go out on to the beams. Such a net is often spread, but is fixed only at the corners, and owing to the space caused by sagging, it forms no effective safeguard. This sagging could easily be remedied by placing four or more hooks along each side. The man to whom I was speaking is very intelligent, and he says that the majority of the accidents occurring on deck to men directing the unloading are the result of their own carelessness, Avhereas in the case detailed, the accident is in most cases quite unavoidable by the exercise of ordinary care on the part of the worker. " Another kind of accident is that in connection Avith the hatches of the ships, where the man who is working over the hatch, is directing operations in the hold itself as Avell as the operations of the man who is working the winch; he is particularly liable to be struck by a sling. There have been all sorts of means suggested to prevent the accident of a man being knocked down the hold; but if you protect the hatch by means of a Avail or high coaming, the man is caught, as it were, between the blades of a pair of scissors, is cut in two, or his leg or rib broken against the very thing put up to protect him. A rope is open to the same objection, except that it is more likely to allow the man to fall through into the hold. If there is no protection at all round the hold, the man simply topples over into it. This is a particularly dangerous place even for a perfectly sound, healthy man AA'ith his AA'its about him ; and if he is liable to epileptic attacks there is an added risk." '' Can you make any suggestion as to how this risk can be minimised? " asked the reporter. " I could make one suggestion, at any rate; it may not be practicable— an expert have to say that. I thought, however, it might be possible to stretch a net a few feet doA\m from the opening of the hatch, so as to project about 2ft. inwards all round, just like a tray. This Avould increase the man's chance of being saved if he knocked over, and I think it Avould be possible to AAork the slings clear of this net, except where wood or iron rods Avere concerned.'' " Have there been many accidents of this kind in Lyttelton, doctor? " " Oh, yes, it is an accident we have seen a great deal of, and there must be some means of it. My suggestion might perhaps be a cheap and easy method of overcoming the difficulty ; but of course the net must be placed in such a way as not to ' foul with the slings of cargo." " Do you have many cases of heartstrain in Lyttelton?" asked the reporter. "Yes," replied the doctor, " that is a very common kind of accident, occurring chiefly amongst shunters, also amongst postmen. It often occurs in a young and muscular man, and usually through his making a violent effort to push or lift something beyond his strength, or making a violent effort to walk up a hill really faster than his lung capacity enables him to go AA'ith safety. The ma" generally comes in in a nervous «tate, and complains of palpitation a d pain over the heart, anrl tells of having tried to push a heavy truck, or lift something heavy. These are very troublesome

cases to treat, and as a rule it is at least two months—often longer—before the man is in any Avay fit to undertake work; and even then he has to be put on light work. It is a long time before he can undertake a heavy job. I have seen quite a run of these cases." " And how do you suggest that this kind of accident should be prevented?" " Well, it is obviously preventible if the man only realised what a foolish thing it is to overtax his strength. The same kind of accident often happens in sport, Avhen young fellows are trying to lift heavy weights. In the same Avay there are often a number of minor accidents to the muscles of the back, and they all mean a good long time off work. " There is also the question of rupture. That is very common with Lyttelton men. Some part of the abdominal wall gives way, and the abdominal contents are protruded underneath the skin. That, again, is preA'entible by a man's own knowledge of his strength. He should know his OAvn strength and capacity, and nothing should induce him to try and go beyond it. Rupture is frequently due to a violent effort to do something beyond the man's poAver." *' Have you seen many accidents, doctor, Avhich are due to falling tackle? " " Oh, yes, that also is a very common source of danger. I had to stitch up a man's nose recently; it was cut by the end of a falling derrick. Another two inches, and the man's whole head would have been crushed in. Perhaps this could be avoided to some extent by having an additional stay on the derrick, in case of the mainstay giving way. Another wire rope might be put on, and allowed to be slack just to such a degree that it would take the weight of the derrick before it got too great a momentum in falling. This Avould save it coming right down. But nobody seems to bother much about these things; I suppose it comes from the fact that for so many centuries Aye have regarded working men merely as cattle. I repeatedly see very heavy pieces of cargo coming out of the ship's hold, and the men in the trucks standing underneath. I doubt if I could be got to do it. Their lives are absolutely in the hands of the man who made the tackle, and the man who is responsible for its being in good order."