Accident Chain
Every accident as a result of a hazard is preventable by breaking the accident chain before the last link. Breaking the chain is known as intervention, which is reactive, whereas reducing the potential for an accident chain at all is mitigation, which is proactive. An example of a reactive step is the creation of a collapse zone at a structure fire. An example of a proactive step is wearing personal protective equipment at a fire call.
The accident chain:
- The environment such as weather or lighting
- Human factors such as training or attitude
- Equipment such as proper use and maintenance
- Event the unsafe junction of the previous three links
- Accident the actual injury or property damage
Read more about this topic: Hazard Prevention
Famous quotes containing the words accident and/or chain:
“A sudden light transfigures a trivial thing, a weather-vane, a wind-mill, a winnowing flail, the dust in the barn door; a moment,—and the thing has vanished, because it was pure effect; but it leaves a relish behind it, a longing that the accident may happen again.”
—Walter Pater (1839–1894)
“The conclusion suggested by these arguments might be called the paradox of theorizing. It asserts that if the terms and the general principles of a scientific theory serve their purpose, i. e., if they establish the definite connections among observable phenomena, then they can be dispensed with since any chain of laws and interpretive statements establishing such a connection should then be replaceable by a law which directly links observational antecedents to observational consequents.”
—C.G. (Carl Gustav)