Shake Hands with Danger

[Nige]

I must be showing my age. I can remember when everything on this was a current model ........!!
The message is just as relevant today as it ever was IMHO.
Was the voice over done by Col. Sherman T Potter of the 4077th MASH.?

 

[mowingman]

My favorite safety film. When I was the MSHA safety director for 20 plants, I used to show this once/year at each plant. The older guys loved this film. I always showed it right after the lunch break, to wake everyone up. Lots of funny stuff, but it still makes a person think about safe practices.
Jeff

 

[grandpa]

My favorite safety film. When I was the MSHA safety director for 20 plants, I used to show this once/year at each plant. The older guys loved this film. I always showed it right after the lunch break, to wake everyone up. Lots of funny stuff, but it still makes a person think about safe practices.
Jeff

Must be standard video from MSHA, as I've seen this for twenty years as well.

 

[kshansen]

Must be standard video from MSHA, as I've seen this for twenty years as well.

Twenty years? Seems like I first saw that one one just like it 40 years ago!

Back then the company would have a once a year "safety dinner" for the various quarries, good steak dinner, and they would always show this right after the meal! Guess they thought that added something to the impact of the movie.

 

[56wrench]

we were shown the same video at trade school when I was an apprentice. some things never get old. there should be a farm video made with a kid in the cab and the parent outside while the engine or machine is running. i'm sure it would change a few operating habits for the better. I still use the DO NOT OPERATE tags and over the years that habit has at the least, prevented somebody else from starting a piece of equipment that was under repair while waiting for parts (maybe days or weeks)

 

[Nige]

Must be standard video from MSHA, as I've seen this for twenty years as well.

Nothing to do with MSHA Grandpa. Cat made this video back in 1980, back in the day when every machine model had VHS videos for both inspection & operation. I think I may still have some of them in my loft somewhere.

 

[funwithfuel]

I was first introduced to this video by my MSHA trainer as well. This and "remember Charlie " that was brutal.
Always thought it odd, the mines and quarries preach safety but in actuality , don't practice it. It was why I left quarry work behind.
Thanks Nige, good stuff.

 

[kshansen]

Always thought it odd, the mines and quarries preach safety but in actuality , don't practice it. It was why I left quarry work behind.
Thanks Nige, good stuff.

Maybe where I worked was somewhat an exception to that "rule" but there were times that they seemed to a bit too focused on some details. But other times you could use this to your advantage. Say you wanted a new tool that would save you some work and time doing a job. Just figure out a way to word it to sound like it would be a way to make the job safer and the purse strings got looser fast at times.

It could back fire though, if you made a job appear dangerous to do they would farm that one out to some outside contractor while you had your hours cut saying there was no overtime work this weekend! Always pi$$ed me off to see outside contractors doing things that would get one of us wrote up for doing.

 

[funwithfuel]

Maybe where I worked was somewhat an exception to that "rule" but there were times that they seemed to a bit too focused on some details. But other times you could use this to your advantage. Say you wanted a new tool that would save you some work and time doing a job. Just figure out a way to word it to sound like it would be a way to make the job safer and the purse strings got looser fast at times.

It could back fire though, if you made a job appear dangerous to do they would farm that one out to some outside contractor while you had your hours cut saying there was no overtime work this weekend!

The place I was refused to spend money, had to beg for nuts and bolts, it was ridiculous. Shameful really. 40 ton haul truck w only 2 functioning brake calipers, 2 out of 12 . The guy who took care of the field system, his front end was completely clapped out, I had to destroy everything upon removal to get parts otherwise they'd have me put it back together. I hope where I was , wasn't the standard but it seems pretty consistent.

 

[mowingman]

There is another one of those old safety films that I think Cat made. I can not remember the film name, but I believe Richard Widmark did the narration.

 

[wornout wrench]

Believe it or not, I never saw this film until a couple of years ago.
Some of the young lads at work were laughing about something, said that it reminded them of "Shake hands with Danger"
When I had the blank look, they had to tell me about it. Then when I got home I looked it up.
By 1980, I was finished with my training so never saw it in trade school, but surprised that I never saw it during a safety meeting.

 

[John C.]

Went to work for a small coal mine in 1981 and found out about being under MSHA rules. I don't know if the rule came in right then or maybe a little later but everyone had to go through 40 hours of safety training the first time and the eight hours every year there after. I spent almost nine years working under MSHA surface coal mine rules and was forced to sit through that film every year. For newbies it seemed to work OK. For the rest of us who could recite the narration it became tedious and a joke. Management wouldn't pay for things like jacks and jack stands. Tag out procedures consisted of just pulling the key and locking them up somewhere. Black out curtains were what you could find to keep the arc welding flash less visible and plywood got used a lot to prevent air arcing sparks from flying into something flammable. People were working alone at night all the time and communications gear generally was how loud you could yell. Somehow we only had a few lost time accidents and never got anyone killed.

 

[Truck Shop]

Safety? First thing people need to be aware of their surroundings and alert. A friend of my brother went to work on the pipeline in Alaska. It's a wonder the man can walk to this day.
He was working on a paddle wheel scraper when the next thing he knew he was being pulled through the frog. A moron climbed into the cab ignored the red tag out of service used
at the time-you can guess what happened. Another incident only with a 988-that guy was lucky he didn't get crushed, the guy who climbed in the cab wasn't so lucky though, he got
his head and a$$ beat all to hell.

 

[Mother Deuce]

Safety? First thing people need to be aware of their surroundings and alert. A friend of my brother went to work on the pipeline in Alaska. It's a wonder the man can walk to this day.
He was working on a paddle wheel scraper when the next thing he knew he was being pulled through the frog. A moron climbed into the cab ignored the red tag out of service used
at the time-you can guess what happened. Another incident only with a 988-that guy was lucky he didn't get crushed, the guy who climbed in the cab wasn't so lucky though, he got
his head and a$$ beat all to hell.

Behavioral reinforcement is sometimes very painful when the teacher is very stressed!

 

[kshansen]

Well years ago after Norm, the best guy I ever worked with, took a transfer to another quarry closer to his house. They hired a guy who was to be my helper.

One day while I was in the cab trying to trouble shoot an intermittent failure to crank problem on a Mack truck who comes sliding out from under the truck? I asked him what he was doing and his reply was he thought while the truck was in the shop it would be a good idea to check the clutch adjustment for free play under the truck!

I don't recall what I did say but tried to explain that was not a smart thing to be doing while he knew someone was in the cab without letting me know he was under there! Not too much latter he I guess talked to the boss and got transferred over to the black-top plant in the quarry as a helper over there. Not sure the rest of the story but don't think he stayed at the quarry for more than a year after that.

This same guy had previously worked for a fleet that mainly hauled milk to processing plants from farms. He complained about the rules there on how often they were suppose to wash their hands while working on the trailers!

 

[Truck Shop]

I'm weary of others when comes to any of this type of work. I experienced a incident back in the 80's on a recovery while towing. Because of it I want to see the hands of the operator are off the controls
while I or anyone is working in spot that could cost them life or limb. I damn near lost my right hand, which would have effected me in many ways. But not just that I would have to learn everything over
using my left hand--I would no longer be able to do the one thing the one talent that I was given and that would have been devastating not only for me but others who like my work.

 

[John C.]

When you mention the hands off the controls, it reminded me of doing that and requiring operators on lifting equipment to put up their hands when the ground man wanted everything to stop so people could get close. I told them I wanted to see those hands at the same level as their nose and I did the same. Anyone getting smart or making some dumb remarks about it was taken off the project and given a number 2 shovel and made to dig out sediment boxes and dump garbage cans. I also used the hands up when the operation of the lifting unit had problems. Say the boom on the boom truck got the shakes going down or a loader bucket wanted to dump too fast and you had to stop it and start again. When my guys saw my hands off the controls, everyone got clear.

 

[AllDodge]

Memories, watched this is diesel school about 1983

 

[twr]

The MSHA trainer I use still uses all the old films in our 8 hrs in the hole. EVERY TIME !!!! lest you know whats coming.

 

[kshansen]

When you mention the hands off the controls, it reminded me of doing that and requiring operators on lifting equipment to put up their hands when the ground man wanted everything to stop so people could get close. I told them I wanted to see those hands at the same level as their nose and I did the same. .

When I was running a machine lifting or moving something and a person on the ground gave the signal to stop and hold. I would immediately remove my hands from controls and cross my arms so they could see I was not going to do anything.

One other thing that would pi$$ me off was if running a machine to move or lift something is when two or more people would start trying to direct you! I would stop and motion towards the person who I felt was the one who should be doing all the directing. Bosses always seemed to be the biggest danger in cases like that. Some think they have to be in charge.

Way back when I started at the quarry we had a boss who had been around the business for many years but once in a while he would fall into this bad habit. Then once he came to his senses he would stop and tell the worker who was actually the one handling the project, I've got a phone call to make at the office, let me know how it goes and if you NEED something!"