Confined spaces may hold serious physical and atmospheric hazards for the people working in them. To address these potential dangers, regulations have been put in place to make sure workers can get in and out safely and do their jobs without threatening their health.
Employers are required to follow set procedures whenever employees work inside or near a confined space. A confined space is an area large enough to bodily enter but that has limited or restricted means of entry or exit. It is not designed for continuous occupancy by a worker.
Examples include tanks, underground vaults, manholes, tunnels, sewers, storm drains, equipment housings, crawlspaces and HVAC ducts. Open trenches and excavations, such as building foundations, may not be subject to the rules of the confined space standard. This is not to say that excavation work does not have similar hazards. The regulations that govern excavation work address access and egress, and hazardous atmosphere issues in a different way.
A confined space is less dangerous if workers have had proper training. Training is important in helping workers recognize potential hazards and work safely in and around these spaces. Training is not just a good idea; it is the law. Employers must train employees in a language and vocabulary they can comprehend. If training does not seem to be understood, then the training must be repeated until it is understood.
As companies build project plans, here are three elements in creating a safe environment for workers that are operating in a confined space.
Identifying a Confined Space
Confined spaces can be found on virtually every worksite. Spaces that meet the description of a confined space may appear to be harmless, but be wary of becoming complacent about entering them. Since confined spaces have restricted access, they often lack sufficient natural ventilation. Nonmoving air within those spaces can hold and collect toxic gases, making those places extremely dangerous. Remember, atmospheric hazards accounted for 56 percent of fatalities in confined spaces in the past several years.
If the confined space contains an actual or potential hazardous atmosphere, material that could engulf an entrant, an internal configuration that could result in entrant entrapment or asphyxiation or any other recognized serious safety or health hazard, it is a permit-required confined space (PRCS). The best way to keep safe is to stay aware of the hazards and to recognize symptoms and warning signs of potential problems. Threats in a PRCS can include:
- Asphyxiation, caused by a lack of oxygen in the space or toxic gases or poisoning by toxic gases.
- Injury from a fire and/or explosion if there is a buildup of dust or if flammable liquids are present.
- Shock or electrocution from electrical hazards.
- Injury from hazards associated with rotating or other mechanical equipment.
- Obstructions to access or egress points.
- Drowning from water or another liquid that engulfs the space.
- Heat exhaustion or heat stroke from a high ambient temperature.
- Respiratory problems due to dust buildup.
Not every area that is considered a confined space is marked with a “danger” sign. Not every confined space is a PRCS, and the word “danger” is not required on all nonpermit spaces. Be careful, though–just because a space that has always been a nonpermit space does not mean that conditions won’t change. It is possible for previously non-permit space to transition to a PRCS.
It is important that work crews recognize hazards that can be present in seemingly “normal” situations. Examples include: a crawlspace where a generator is placed too close to the entrance, potentially filling the space with carbon monoxide; a drainage shaft on a residential worksite that lacks sufficient oxygen, potentially rendering entering workers unconscious.
Taking a Team Approach to Safety
OSHA requires a general contractor, subcontractors and the owner keep each other informed about potential dangers in a confined space. If anyone sees or suspects a problem, they must let the other jobsite partners know about it immediately.
Looking at some individual roles in a confined space, for example, the entry supervisor has to sign the permit for the confined space before anyone can enter it, confirming all required tests have been conducted and acceptable entry conditions are found. If conditions become unsafe, the entry supervisor must suspend the entry and the prohibited condition must be corrected before work can resume. The entry supervisor monitors the space to ensure those acceptable entry conditions are maintained. An entry supervisor must ensure a rescue team is available.
Before work begins at a jobsite, each employer must ensure a competent person identifies all confined spaces in which one or more employees it directs may work, and identifies each space that is a permit space through consideration and evaluation of the elements of that space, including testing as necessary.
Projects must have an entry attendant stationed outside the PRCS while workers are inside with the job to ensure employees can safely enter and work within the space. An entry attendant must stay in communication with workers in the space, alert them if there is a problem and call the emergency rescue team if necessary. An attendant can perform a non-entry rescue as specified by the employer’s rescue procedure. If the attendant is required to perform an entry rescue, they can only do so after the attendant has been relieved by another attendant. The relieved attendant may enter a permit space to attempt a rescue when the employer’s permit space program allows the attendant entry for rescue and the attendant has been trained and equipped for rescue operations. One person can serve as both entry supervisor and entry attendant if they have been trained for both jobs.
Authorized entrants into a confined space must know hazards they might face and the symptoms that indicate they may have been exposed to those hazards. They must know how to use any necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) and make sure it is being used. Authorized entrants are required to be in communication with the entry attendant. Authorized entrants must let the attendant know if they encounter a dangerous condition, or signs or symptoms that could indicate there is a hazard in the confined space.
Keeping workers in confined spaces safe is a team effort. Recognizing a confined space and understanding its dangers, along with all parties being trained on how to handle their safety responsibilities are essential to keeping workers safe.
