COMMENTARY: The cost of safety
Theodore James - Friday, March 30th, 2012 at 1:58 AM
Theodore James. * Photo Credit: John Black
It has taken me four months to wrap my head around this continued issue that plagues our territory. The questions about safety and the attempts to ensure that we as a people are safe will continue to be at the forefront of every individual’s thought.
It will continue to be a debate between opinions and facts, relevance and irrelevance until we, as a people, come to agree that whatever needs to be done gets done to ensure that our “peace of mind” is our number one priority.
Today, we face growing concerns of the future of the Virgin Islands. In the past, many of us left our doors unlocked, returned home or to our vehicles and nothing was missing. In the past, we agreed to disagree without the thought of bloodshed but today this is not the case. Today scribes write a different story and the muse tells a different tale.
Safety is a daily social concern that every minister of government, civil servant, man, woman and child must think about. Some marriages fail due to an inadequate response to safety. Countries and territories are invaded due to a breach in safety and people die due to reactive action towards safety. The issue of safety stretches to land, air, sea and cyber, hence continued dialogue and actions are needed in the quest for “peace of mind”.
As I read the news headlines and read the blogs, I realize that some individuals have a negative view, which is in relation to what ministers of government, engineers and other players are doing without first pausing to think about the reasons why certain decisions are made.
In this regard, I refer to the redesigning and removing of the calming device in the airport vicinity. However, I reserve the right to state that in this democracy, it is your right to have and express your opinion just as I am doing in my articles.
As a citizen who resides and frequently jogs in the eighth district, I support the move to redesign and remove the calming device. I have had to shy farther away from the device because motorists are still speeding pass the device – defeating its purpose in the first place. Some motorist when traveling to Trellis Bay, instead of slowing down on the left hand, they instead cross the lane on the right to maintain their speed. This forces joggers towards the ghut. Those actions are reckless hence the situation warrants an alternative approach.
At first, however, I was more caught up with the cost of removing, redesigning, implementing and re-evaluating the project. At first I thought it would have been cheaper to widen the side and place low growing flowers in the device, but that was until I saw drivers using the opposite lane to maintain speed.
Many of us do not realize that what we are now privy to is science at its best or in other words, science at work. We are now exposed to the reality of “trial and error”. Engineers observe their creations come to life; and after implementation, evaluation may reveal certain pertinent flaws which causes them to return to the drawing boards. They can spend time on small scale 3D simulation models to test scenarios which may result in amending certain plans; but the true test is when the simulation becomes real and is implemented on the ground.
The real concern for us is that it costs this territory too much money to implement these projects and it costs more to correct them. For a small territory as this, we cannot afford too many errors, not after we can learn from all the errors developed countries made. At this stage we need to measure four times and cut once.
Occupational Hazards and Safety
Briefly, I will note that I have been noticing that utility service providers also need to pull up their boot straps when it comes to safety. I have seen in one instance where one day, the BVI Electricity Cooperation had a team replacing a line in the Sophie Bay area and there was no signage stating that there was work ahead when traveling from the east. There were no cones 200ft out from the work site either. On another day, at the same area there was all the safety gear in the world. I could only then think that different supervisors looked at safety differently on that day.
There are other instances where a vehicular accident occurred and a tow truck was called to remove the wreckage. Most times debris is left at the scene such as glass, oil and tire fragments. It is my opinion that tow truck operators should clean or make safe the scene for drivers and pedestrians. I remember that was the case in Chicago when my friend’s vehicle was totaled.
After traffic inspectors obtained necessary evidence, tow truck operators by law were required to make safe the scene before the road could be fully functional. Maybe there needs to be legislation on Tow Trucks, Operators and Vehicle Storage Facilities.
Though having safety gear and measures in place they do not guarantee a safe environment, they however reduce the potential risks and liabilities that may result. Safety is paramount and putting our people first should be our number one priority.
From the continued training that first responders go through, to thousands of safety test the New Car Assessment Programs do to ensure consumer safety, to the extraordinary lengths laboratory workers around the world test to minimize and prevent foodborne illnesses, to financial founders, researchers and scientists going beyond the mile for the next breakthrough in medicine, the cost of safety “peace of mind” are in the billions.
Safety takes proper planning and proper planning may take years. The fact of the matter is that science has come this far not on the backs of first time success but through trial and error.
To try and to err exposes our weaknesses but it also provides a path toward success. But to err at such a time as this, proves to be too taxing on the people of this territory. We must truly work together as a people with the elected representatives and public officers to ensure that we work smartly and efficiently in every endeavor.
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Developing and emerging countries typically demonstrate a lax attitude towards occuaptional health and safety issues, as well as environmental issues. This lax attitude exposes their citizens to unneccessary health and safety risks. The lax attitude on health and safety and environmental issues is often done to attract investment. But the health and safety of developing countries’ citizens is not less than that of developed countries. And we should not settled for less protection. Practicing safety saves lives and prevent injuries.
The BVI has changed economically, socially, culturally and politically during the past half century. Growth brought opportunities,enhance the quality of life and improve our standard of living.But it also brought deviant behaviour. As such getting back to what was the norm of leaving our homes or cars unlocked is not impossible but the society will have to be transformed with much behavioural changes.
Safety is a state of mind and a way of life that should be practiced where we live,work and play. It should be a core value and an integral part of the culture of all organization both public and private. Every organization has a responsibility to provide a safe and healthful operatting/working environment for both employees and customers.
Safety is a worthwhile investment that provides significant return on investment. Following established safety practices,procedures,policies or regulations reduces operational cost, prevent/minimize personnel injuries and protect property. Inaddition, it enhances national productivity, boosts GDP, reduces employee lost time, reduces equipment downtime, enhances profit, reduces insurance claims and reduces the burden on an already burdened
healthcare system.
Safety is a national issue that requires the collaboration and cooperation of government, employers and individuals to minimize its cost. Specifically, government should establish an agency to monitor, inspect, enforce and educate itself and the public on safety practices and procedures.
I believe the latest version of the labour code has prescribed requirements for occupational health and safety programs but I don’t often see any of the basic practices such as hard hats where there are overhead hazards, reflective vests for work on traveled roadways, hearing protection when using noisy equipment, etc etc. Moreover, the state of some of the heavy goods vehicles you see around don’t exactly re-assure me that the vehicles have been inspected daily before each use and maintained. For that matter, many people’s jobs involve driving and look how many do so with total disregard for the traffic laws. Seems to me that statutory requirements for health and safety are all well and good, but this territory has a long way to go before it can actually be said that there is an effective system.
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