Hazard Types

Understanding Different Types of Workplace Hazards

Here’s a brief introduction about hazard types: Hazards exist in every workplace, but how do you know which hazard types have the most potential to harm workers? By identifying hazard types at your workplace, you will be better prepared to control or eliminate them, preventing accidents, injury, property damage, and downtime.

Definition of Hazard
A hazard is any situation, substance, activity, or condition that has the potential to cause harm, damage, injury, or adverse effects to humans, property, or the environment.

Understanding different hazard types is crucial for maintaining a safe working environment. Familiarising yourself with the various hazard types helps in recognising and mitigating risks effectively.

Risk
Hazards represent the potential for harm, while risk refers to the likelihood and severity of harm occurring due to exposure to a hazard. Risk assessment involves evaluating hazards, estimating the level of risk, and implementing measures to reduce or eliminate risk.

• There are numerous hazard types that workers may encounter, and being aware of these types is essential for safety.
• Hazard types can significantly affect the wellbeing of employees. An understanding of these hazard types can lead to improved safety measures.
• Identifying the various hazard types is the first step towards creating a safer workplace.
• Awareness of hazard types can empower employees to take proactive measures in their workplace.
• Each of these hazard types poses different levels of risk and requires a tailored approach to management.
• Understanding hazard types like safety, biological, and chemical hazards will guide your health and safety practices.
• Each workplace should assess its unique hazard types to ensure comprehensive safety protocols are in place.

6 Types Of Hazard

01) Safety Hazard

02) Biological Hazard

03) Physical Hazard

04) Ergonomic Hazard

05) Chemical Hazard

06) Workplace Organization Hazard

07) Thermal hazard

08) Radiation hazard

• Ionisation hazard
• Non-ionisation hazard

09) Electrical hazard

01. Safety Hazard

safety hazard are unsafe working condition that can cause injury, illness and death. safety hazard are the most common workplace hazard.

• anything that can cause spills or trips such as cords running across the floor or ice.
• any thing that can cause falls such as working from height including ladders, scaffolds, roofs or any raised work.
• Unguarded machinery and moving machinery parts that worker can  accidentally touch.
• electrical hazard like frayed, cords, missing ground pins, improper wiring.
• confined space.

02. Biological Hazard

Biological hazard include exposure to hard or disease associated with working with animal, people or infections plant material. 

Workplace with these kinds of hazards include but are not limited to work in school, day facilities, collage and university, hospital, laboratories. emergency response nursing homes or various outdoor occupations.

• Blood and other body fluid
• Fungal mold
• Bacteria and viruses
• Plants
• Insect bites
• Animal and bird dropping

Bacteria

• These are single celled organisms that are found in vast numbers in and on the human body. Some are harmless, some are beneficial and some cause disease (eg. Legionnaire’s disease, leptospirosis).
• Bacteria are 10 to 100 times larger than viruses.
• They acquire energy from the same essential sources as humans, including sugars, proteins, and fats.
• Some bacteria live and multiply in the environment while others are adapted to life within human or animal hosts.
• Some bacteria can double in number every fifteen minutes while others take weeks or months to multiply.
• Bacteria cause many types of diseases, ranging from mild skin irritation to lethal pneumonia.

Viruses

• Viruses are very small infectious organisms that reproduce by hijacking living cells to manufacture more viruses. Many cause disease eg. Hepatitis
• Viruses are different from all other infectious microorganisms because they are the only group of microorganisms that cannot replicate outside of a host cell.
• Because viruses do not eat food – instead they seize materials and energy from host cells by hijacking cellular machinery.
• Viruses are known to infect nearly every type of organism on Earth. Some viruses, called bacteriophages, even infect bacteria.

Fungi

• Fungi are diverse in terms of their shape, size and means of infecting humans.
• Example of Fungi are Moulds, yeast and Mushrooms. Most are harmless to humans but some can cause disease such as Fungal infections (e.g. Athlete’s foot) and Framer’s Lung (an allergic irritation caused by inhaling mould spores.
• Fungi most often cause skin infections and pneumonia. Fungal diseases are particularly dangerous to immune compromised people, such as those suffering from AIDS.

Prions

• Prions (the name is derived from proteinaceous infectious particle) is the name used by many scientists to describe the pathogen that causes transmissible spongiform encephalopathies (TSE) which are neurodegenerative diseases in mammals.
• Prions are abnormal, transmissible agents able to induce abnormal folding of normal cellular Prion Proteins in the brain, leading to brain damage eg. Creutzfeldt Jakob Disease (CJD or “Mad Cow Disease”).
• Prions are a disease-causing form of a normal protein called cellular prion protein
  (PrPC) that is located primarily on the surface of central nervous system cells but
  also in other tissues of the body in mammals.
• Prions are unique pathogens in that they appear to have no nucleic acid and
  thereby differ from viruses, bacteria, fungi and other pathogens.
• Prions are resistant to procedures that break down nucleic acid and destroy
  biological forms of pathogens.
• Prions are responsible for genetic, sporadic and acquired forms of
  neurodegenerative disease.
• Prions are an abnormal form of a normal protein that is genetically encoded, they
  do not produce an immune response in the host as would a foreign infectious agent.

Parasites

• Parasites are part of a large group of organisms called eukaryotes.
• Parasites are different from bacteria or viruses because their cells share many features with human cells including a defined nucleus.
• Some parasites only replicate within a host organism, but some can multiply freely in the environment.
• In developing countries unicellular parasites, such as Plasmodium, the cause of malaria, are a major sources of disease.
• Waterborne parasites, such as Giardia and Cryptosporidium are the most common causes of parasitic disease in the United States.

03. Physical Hazard

Physical hazard can be any factors within the environment that can harm the body without necessary touching it.

• Radiation  including ionizing, non-ionizing, EMFS, micro waves, radio waves
• High exposure to sunlight, ultraviolet rays
•  extremes hot and cold Temperature
• Constant loud noise

04. Ergonomic Hazard 

Occur when the type of work body position and working condition put strain on your body. they are the hardest to spot science you don’t always immediately notice the strain on your body or the harm that these hazard pose.

Short term exposure may result in sore muscles the next day or in the day following the exposure can result in serious long term illness.

Ergonomics is concerned with the interaction between people and l The tools, equipment or machinery that they are using :

• The workplace environment (Suitability of Lighting)
• Organizational factors (Shift Patterns, Hours of Work)

Typical ill health associated due to ergonomic issues are and they are called Musculoskeletal Disorders. They are mainly caused due to repetitive tasks, activities done in awkward position.

• Back Injuries and back pain
• Work related upper limb disorders (WRULD’s)
• Other chronic soft tissue injuries

It’s important to continuously educate employees about hazard types to foster a culture of safety.

• Improper adjusted work station and chairs.
• Frequent lifting 
• Poor posture
• Awkward movement, especially if they are repetitive.
• Having to use too much force, especially if you have to do it frequently vibration.
• Display screen equipment use (Computers).
• Factory Assembly of small components.
• Bricklaying
• Supermarket checkout operation

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05. Chemical Hazard

Are present when worker is exposed to any chemical preparation in the work place in any form (solid, liquid and gas). Some are safer than others but to some workers who are more sensitive chemical even common solutions can cause illness, skin, irritation or breathing problems.

• The Toxicity of a substance is its capacity to cause injury once inside the body.
• A substance is said to be toxic if small doses cause death or serious Ill health when inhaled, swallowed or absorbed via the skin. E.g. Potassium Cyanide
• Harmful Chemical : if large doses cause death or serious ill-health when inhaled, Swallowed or absorbed via the Skin.
• Corrosive Chemical : if it destroys living tissue on contact with any part of the body E.g. Concentrated Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH).
• Irritant : if it causes inflammation of the skin or mucous membranes (E.g. Eye and Lungs) through immediate, prolonged or repeated contact.
• Carcinogenic : if causes Cancer (abnormal growth of cells in the body) when inhaled, Swallowed or absorbed via the skin E.g. Asbestos.
• Mutagen : if it causes genetic mutations that can be inherited.
• Toxic to reproduction : If it causes sterility or affect an unborn child
• Skin Sensitizers : Can cause allergic dermatitis on contact with the skin E.g. Epoxy Resin.
• Respiratory Sensitizer : Can cause asthma on inhalation into the lungs e.g. Flour
• dust and isocyanates.
• liquid like cleaning products, paints, acids, solvent especially if chemical are in an unlabeled container
• Vapors and fumes that come from welding or exposure to solvent
• Gases like acetylene, propane, carbon monoxide and helium
• Flammable material like gasoline, solvent and explosive chemical 
• Pesticides

06. Work Organization Hazard 

Hazard or stressors that  cause stress (short term effect) and strain  (long term effect). These are hazard associated with workplace issue such as work load, lack of control and respect.

• workload demand 
• workplace violence
• the intensity and pace
• Respect or lack thereof
• Flexibility 
• Control or say about thing
• Control or say about thing
• Social support or relation
• Sexual harassment

07) Thermal hazard

• Many processes and equipment in chemical plant operate at high temperature and directly expose hot environment, hot surface and high temperature radiation.
• Extreme cold temperature hazard cannot be neglected because it is able to present real hazard to workers.
• Steam, hot-water pipes or any other heating media lines. All exposed steam, Hot-water pipes or any other heating media lines within 7 feet of the floor or working platform or within 15 inches measured horizontally from stairways, ramps, or fixed ladders shall be covered with an insulating material, or guarded in such manner as to prevent contact.
• Serious injuries could occur from coming in contact with hot surfaces without hot surface signs.
• Hot/ Cold surfaces warning signs “Hot Surface Do not Touch” to be provided to alert workers around them.

08)Radiation hazard

Types of Ionizing Radiation

Alpha Particles

• Sub atomic particles emitted by some radioactive substances.
• Do not have penetrating power and are stopped by thin material like Paper and the dead layers of cells on the surface of the skin.
• Not considered hazardous provided they are outside the body.
• But very hazardous if the source gets into the body by ingestion or inhalation.

Beta Particles

• Sub atomic particles emitted by some radioactive substances.
• More penetrating power and can penetrate through the skin into living tissues.
• Considered hazardous when outside the body.

X-Rays

• A form of High energy electromagnetic radiation (light) emitted by some radioactive substances and X Ray generators.
• High penetrating power
• Can shine right through the Human Body (though not through dense bone tissue).
• Considered very hazardous.

Gamma Rays

• A form of very high energy electromagnetic energy (light) emitted by some radioactive substances.
• Very High penetrating power.
• Can shine through the human body (even the bones) and through solid objects like steel
• Considered very Hazardous.

Neutrons

• Sub atomic Particles emitted by some radioactive substances
• Very High Penetrating power
• Can penetrate through the body
• Considered very hazardous

Types of Non Ionizing Radiation

Ultra Violet Rays

• High Frequency electromagnetic radiation (light) emitted by white hot materials such as the arc produced during arc welding or excessive exposure to sun.

Visible Light

• Electromagnetic radiation between the UV and IR frequencies and visible to the human eye, arising from artificial lighting and display screens.

Infra Red Light

• Lower frequency electromagnetic radiation (light) emitted by red hot materials such as Molten metal being poured into castings.

Microwaves

• Lower Frequency electromagnetic radiation emitted by a microwave generator.

Radio waves

• Lower frequency electromagnetic radiation emitted by an antenna.

09) Electrical hazard

Electric Shock

• Severe shock can cause involuntary muscle grip, heart fibrillation, respiratory failure and cardiac arrest.
• Electrical shock occurs when a person touches a live surface and current passes through their body using the body as a conductor.
• Most important factor that determines what the effects will be is the amount of current.

Burns

• Direct Electrical burns where current causes overheating as it passes through the skin and the internal tissues of the body.
• There may be entry and exit burns and these will be full skin thickness.
• Internal tissue burns can be very serious and may prove fatal.
• This does not occur as a result of current passing through the body, but when an electrical accident causes something to overheat and explode.
• Example. dropping of a spanner onto a high voltage cable can cause a short circuit which results in a flash of radiant heat and an explosion of molten metal.

Fire and Explosion

• Electrical equipment may be faulty and overheat as a result, leading to a fire.
• The system may be overloaded, as too much current is passing through it overheats.
• Misuse of equipment : example. connected into mains supply by pushing bare wires into the socket rather than using the proper plug.
• Wrong type of electrical equipment is brought into flammable atmosphere.
• A flammable atmosphere is accidently created in an area where it would not be expected.
• Electrical equipment may produce heat or sparks as a part of its normal operation.
• Poor internal connections.

Arcing

• Arcing is where electricity jumps across an air gap.
• High voltage Power lines can arc across distances of over 10 meters through air.
• Risks associated with arcing
  • l Electric shock as a result of being struck by the arc
  • Direct burns as a result of being struck by the arc.
  • Indirect burns from the radiant heat given off by the arc and from the melting of any equipment struck.
  • Damage to the eyes as a result of the Ultraviolet light that is emitted by the arc.

Secondary Effects

• Any sort of injury that results indirectly from receiving an electric shock.
• Secondary effect injuries occur when people undergo violent muscle contractions during an electric shock accident.
• Thrown across a room and receive cuts, bruises and broken bones as a result of fall from height.