PROTECTIVE CLOTHING & WORKWEAR MISCONCEPTIONS
Mark Lant of ProGARM, explores some of the common fallacies around Arc Flash.
When it comes to industrial safety, all of us understand the importance of wearing a hard hat, protective gloves or steel toe-capped boots. In fact, most employers wouldn’t dream of letting their teams on-site without adequate protection, and workers themselves are more than clued up when it comes to the latest safety requirements. However, the same can’t be said when it comes to the potentially fatal risk posed by Arc Flash – a relatively misunderstood, but extremely common type of electrical explosion facing sectors from industrial electrical, to utilities, civil engineering and rail.
WHAT ACTUALLY IS AN ARC FLASH? Hotter than the sun and louder than a bullet, an Arc Flash is when an arcing fault releases dangerous levels of radiant energy, which vaporizes metal that spews from the arc. The air is super-heated causing pressure
waves that can throw individuals across rooms and create a deadly molten shrapnel. They can be caused by voltage spikes, worn connections, cable strikes or gaps in insulation, and are a risk even in low-voltage set ups.
It goes without saying; the extreme temperatures of an Arc Flash can burn clothing and human skin within fractions of a second, even if the operative is situated five or six metres away from the Arc Flash event. It can also result in an explosive pressure wave that can throw workers across the room, and a sound blast that can rupture eardrums. An Arc Flash event is also accompanied by a bright flash which can cause temporary or even permanent blindness.
Treatment for those that survive an incident can require years of skin grafts, hospital stays and rehabilitation – they may never recover sufficiently to regain their
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