ELECTRICAL

SAFETY
• Whenever you work with power tools or on electrical
circuits, there is a risk of electrical hazards, especially
electrical shock. Anyone can be exposed to these
hazards at home or at work. Workers are exposed to
more hazards because job sites can be cluttered with
tools and materials, fast-paced, and open to the
weather. Risk is also higher at work because many
jobs involve electric power tools.
There are four main types of electrical
injuries:
• Electrocution (death due to electrical shock)
• Electrical shock
• Burns
• Falls.
How is an electrical shock
received?
 Real Scenario
30-year-old male electrical technician was helping a company service
representative test the voltage-regulating unit on a new rolling mill. While the
electrical technician went to get the equipment service manual, the service
representative opened the panel cover of the voltage regulator’s control cabinet
in preparation to trace the low-voltage wiring in question (the wiring was not
color-coded). The service representative climbed onto a nearby cabinet in order
to view the wires. The technician returned and began working inside the control
cabinet, near exposed, energized electrical conductors. The technician tugged
at the low-voltage wires while the service representative tried to identify them
from above. Suddenly, the representative heard the victim making a gurgling
sound and looked down to see the victim shaking as though he were being
shocked. Cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) was administered to the victim
about 10 minutes later. He was pronounced dead almost 2 hours later as a
result of his contact with an energized electrical conductor.
To prevent an incident like this,
employers should take the following
steps:
• Establish proper rules and procedures on how to access electrical
control cabinets without getting hurt.
• Make sure all employees know the importance of de-energizing
(shutting off) electrical systems before performing repairs.
• Equip voltage-regulating equipment with color-coded wiring.
• Train workers in CPR.
 Real Scenario
• A maintenance man rode 12 feet above the floor on a motorized lift
to work on a 230-volt light fixture. He did not turn off the power
supply to the lights. He removed the line fuse from the black wire,
which he thought was the “hot” wire. But, because of a mistake in
installation, it turned out that the white wire was the “hot” wire,
not the black one. The black wire was neutral. He began to strip the
white wire using a wire stripper in his right hand. Electricity passed
from the “hot” white wire to the stripper, then into his hand and
through his body, and then to ground through his left index finger. A
co-worker heard a noise and saw the victim lying face-up on the lift.
She immediately summoned another worker, who lowered the
platform. CPR was performed, but the maintenance man could not
be saved. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
 You can prevent injuries and deaths
by remembering the following points:

• If you work on an electrical circuit, test to make sure that the circuit is
de-energized (shut off)!
• Never attempt to handle any wires or conductors until you are
absolutely positive that their electrical supply has been shut off.
• Be sure to lock out and tag out circuits so they cannot be re-energized.
• Always assume a conductor is dangerous.
Danger of Electric Shock
• The severity of injury from electrical shock depends on the amount of
electrical current and the length of time the current passes through
the body.
Burn Caused by Electricity
• The most common shock-related, nonfatal injury is a
burn.
• Burns caused by electricity may be of three types:
• electrical burns,
• arc burns, and
• thermal contact burn
Arc-Blast
• arc-blast—explosive release of molten material from
equipment caused by high-amperage arcs.
• Arc-blasts occur when powerful, high-amperage
currents arc through the air. Arcing is the luminous
electrical discharge that occurs when high voltages
exist across a gap between conductors and current
travels through the air. This situation is often caused
by equipment failure due to abuse or fatigue.
Temperatures as high as 35,000°F have been reached
in arc-blasts.
Electrical Fires
• Electricity is one of the most common causes of fires
and thermal burns in homes and workplaces.
• Defective or misused electrical equipment is a major
cause of electrical fires.
What must be done to be safe?

• Use the three-stage safety model:

recognize, evaluate, and control hazards.
Safety Model Stage 1—
Recognizing Hazards
• The first part of the safety model is recognizing the
hazards around you. Only then can you avoid or
control the hazards.
HOW DO WE RECOGNIZE
HAZARDS?
Inadequate wiring
Exposed electrical parts
Overhead powerlines
Defective insulation
Improper grounding
Wet conditions
Wet conditions
Damaged tools and equipment
Improper PPE
Improper PPE
Additional Hazards
• There may be chemical hazards.
Solvents and other substances may
be poisonous or cause disease.
• Frequent overhead work can cause
tendinitis (inflammation) in your
shoulders.
Additional Hazards
• Intensive use of hand tools that
involve force or twisting can cause
tendinitis of the hands, wrists, or
elbows. Use of hand tools can also
cause carpal tunnel syndrome, which
results when nerves in the wrist are
damaged by swelling tendons or
contracting muscles.
Additional Hazards
• Low back pain can result from lifting objects the wrong way or
carrying heavy loads of wire or other material. Back pain can also
occur as a result of injury from poor working surfaces such as wet or
slippery floors. Back pain is common, but it can be disabling and can
affect young individuals.
• Chips and particles flying from tools can injure your eyes. Wear eye
protection.
• Falling objects can hit you. Wear a hard hat.
• Sharp tools and power equipment can cause cuts and other injuries. If
you receive a shock, you may react and be hurt by a tool.
Additional Hazards
• You can be injured or killed by falling from a
ladder or scaffolding. If you receive a shock—
even a mild one—you may lose your balance
and fall. Even without being shocked, you
could fall from a ladder or scaffolding.
• You expose yourself to hazards when you do
not wear PPE.
Safety Model Stage 2—
Evaluating Hazards
• After you recognize a hazard, your next step is to
evaluate your risk from the hazard.
HOW DO WE EVALUATE OUR
RISK?
• Obviously, exposed wires should be recognized as a
hazard. If the exposed wires are 15 feet off the
ground, your risk is low. However, if you are going to
be working on a roof near those same wires, your risk
is high. The risk of shock is greater if you will be
carrying metal conduit that could touch the exposed
wires. You must constantly evaluate your risk.
Safety Model Stage 3—
Controlling Hazards
• In order to control hazards, you must first create
a safe work environment, then work in a safe
manner. Generally, it is best to remove the
hazards altogether and create an environment
that is truly safe.
HOW DO WE CREATE A SAFE
WORK ENVIRONMENT?
• A safe work environment is created by
controlling contact with electrical voltages
and the currents they can cause. Electrical
currents need to be controlled so they do
not pass through the body. In addition to
preventing shocks, a safe work environment
reduces the chance of fires, burns, and falls.
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Treat all conductors—even “de-energized” ones
—as if they are energized until they are locked
out and tagged
• Verify circuits are de-energized before starting
work
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Lock out and tag out (LOTO) circuits and machines
Lock-out/tag-out
• An essential safety procedure that protects workers
from injury while working on or near electrical circuits
and equipment. Lock-out involves applying a physical
lock to the power source(s) of circuits and equipment
after they have been shut off and de-energized. The
source is then tagged out with an easy-to-read tag
that alerts other workers in the area that a lock has
been applied.
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Prevent overloaded
wiring by using the
right size and type
of wire.
• Base on PEC wire
ampacity
• TW, THW, THHN,
THWN are the most
type of wire used in
the Philippines
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Prevent exposure to live electrical parts by
isolating them
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Prevent exposure to live wires and parts by
using insulation
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Prevent shocking currents from electrical
systems and tools by grounding them.
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Prevent shocking currents by using GFCIs.
Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter –
GFCI
• A fast-acting circuit breaker designed to shut off
electric power in the event of a ground-fault
within as little as 1/40 of a second. It works by
comparing the amount of current going to and
returning from equipment along the circuit
conductors.
Required GFCI Protection base on
PEC
A. Dwelling unit
1. Bathrooms
2. Garages and also accessory buildings that have a floor located at or below grade level not
intended as habitable rooms and limited to storage areas, work areas, and areas of similar use
3. Outdoors
4. Crawl spaces — at or below grade level
5. Unfinished basements
6. Kitchens
7. Sinks — within 1.8 m (6 ft) of the outside edge of the sink
8. Boathouses
9. Bathtubs or shower stalls – within 1.8 m (6 ft) of the outside edge of the bathtub or shower
stall
10. Laundry areas
Required GFCI Protection base on
PEC
B. Other Than Dwelling Units
1. Bathrooms
2. Commercial and Institutional Kitchen
3. Rooftops
4. Outdoors
5. Sinks – within 1.8 m (6 ft) of the outside edge of the sink
6. Indoor wet locations
7. Locker rooms with associated showering facilities
8. Garages, service bays, and similar areas other than vehicle exhibition halls
and showrooms
 To create a safe work environment
by doing the following
• Prevent against electric shock or arc blast when
working live by using proper PPE and protective
tools
What is PPE or Personal Protective
Equipment?
• Personal protective equipment or PPE is
protective equipment used for work related
occupational health and safety purposes.
Why is PPE important?
• PPE is designed to protect the worker’s body
from hazards and injuries such as blunt impacts,
electrical hazards, heat, chemicals, and infection,
etc.
What do I wear?
How to Treat a Victim of Electrical
Shock?
• FIRST STEP
• Look over the area of the incident carefully
• Check for the source of the electrical shock. Look to see if the
victim is still in contact with the source. Remember that electricity
can flow through the victim and into you.
• Never use water, even if there is a fire, as water can conduct electricity.
• Never enter an area where electrical equipment is used if the floor is
wet.
• Use a fire extinguisher made for electrical fires. Fire extinguishers for
use on electrical fires will be labelled as a C, BC, or ABC extinguisher.
How to Treat a Victim of Electrical
Shock?
• SECOND STEP
• Call emergency services.
• Explain that the emergency involves and electrical shock so the
responders can be best prepared.
• Try not to panic. Keeping as calm as you can will help you relay the proper
information.
• Speak clearly. Emergency services will need accurate and clear
information. Speaking too quickly might lead to misunderstanding, which
can waste valuable time.
• Provide your address and phone number accurately.
How to Treat a Victim of Electrical
Shock?
• THIRD STEP
• Shut off the electricity.
• If you can do so safely, turn off the electrical current. Don’t
attempt to rescue someone near a high-voltage line. Shutting
off the current at the power box, the circuit breaker or the fuse
box is the preferred option.
How to Treat a Victim of Electrical
Shock?
• FOURTH STEP
• Separate the victim from the source.
• Don’t touch the victim, even with a non-conducting instrument,
if the electricity hasn’t been shut off. Once you’re sure there is
no current, use a rubber or wooden stick, or any other non-
conducting tool, to separate the victim from the source.
How to Treat a Victim of Electrical
Shock?
• FIFTH STEP
• Apply CPR if needed.
• Check the victim’s vital signs. Perform CPR or rescue breathing
if breathing has stopped or seems slow.