I have been asked to come up with a list of typical things that surveyors should be aware of while outside conducting normal surveying activities.
My plan is to divide the field work into four general categories: Urban, Sub-urban, rural and remote. Any special environments (tunnels, confined spaces, airports, rock quarries, etc.) will handled separately.
From traffic issues, crime, snakes, bees, other wild animals, poisons plants, illegal drug operations, heat/cold, irate land owners, etc., I need to identify as many safety related items as possible. Once the list is populated, I will identify to management the precautions the survey department is taking to prevent becoming a safety statistic.
As usual any thoughts, comments or suggestions are welcome.
Cutting tools, especially machetes -- one surveyor I know nearly cut his thumb off with one a few years ago.
The lack of these three items probably leads to lots of accidents, so these should be things all surveyors make use of:
1.) Common sense
2.) Be aware of surroundings
3.) Actually THINK about what you are doing.
Cutting tools, especially machetes -- one surveyor I know nearly cut his thumb off with one a few years ago.
A survey tech under my charge actually did cut his thumb off with a machete about 11 years ago. They tried to reattach it but the surgery was unsuccessful.
Dull tools are worse than properly sharpened tools.
Don't forget eye protection situations.
Safty vests
Don't leave the truck without one. It doesn't matter whether the survey is rural, urban, or in the woods.
What I use to tell my guys was to always wear a vest even in the deep woods so that if you got lost and died, the game wardens could at least spot your body from the air and retrieve it before the animals consumed it.
Watching what's going on ABOVE you as well as around you (power lines, things that may fall on construction site, etc.).
Watch traffic. Inexperienced field personnel will lost track of what they are doing and step in front of vehicles.
Once I was taking a new engineer with me to do an accident scene survey. On the way to the site I kept repeating myself, telling him about watching traffic. Finally he got aggravated with me for pushing the point too much. We arrived at the site and were surveying on a rural two-lane state highway. Within about 10 minutes after we were surveying he stepped infront of a car going about 60 mph. The car slammed on its brakes, making a terrible sound, and blue smoke filled the air. The smell of burned rubber is unforgettable. The car ran off the road and got back on the road and did not stop. I still can't imagine how that car missed that guy; it must have missed him by an inch. I did not feel the need to issue any more safety warnings to him.
I got missed by inches in a major intersection when I was an Inspector.
A huge Cadillac made a left on red and got hit in the right rear by a Volkswagon Beetle. The impact made the Cadillac swerve within inches of me (I was standing near the left curb of the on-ramp the Cadillac was shooting for). That Cadillac then continued straight towards the right curb return of the ramp and went between two signal standards with only inches to spare on either side and wound up stuck in the ice plant with full throttle applied but the driver let off after a few seconds. After the Police were done with reports and citations the construction workers pushed the Cadillac back out onto the ramp and they were on their way.
Lonely housewives are the most dangerous thing I've had to deal with. Had to do basement measurements in an entire subdivision once (30 yrs ago). There were quite a few housewives who were still in there housecoats/nightwear in the AMs and they hadn't been getting enough...um..attention from their husbands, apparently. Not sure you'd want to add that to your list, though.
I know what you mean, Vanishing.
All the constant hitting-on from hot women just wear me out.
> I know what you mean, Vanishing.
>
> All the constant hitting-on from hot women just wear me out.
Not me, I originally got into surveying for the groupies.
Although infrequent, I would put Zombies pretty high on my list.
Sounds like Office trying to control the world....
Manual should be at least 100 to 200 pages long. Memorize and have a test on it for SIT. Common sense, and communication. Maybee the office people should spend a season or two in the field?????
Rule No 3...The Double Tap
Always make sure your zombie is dead.....
Safty vests
I'm with Merlin. Safety vest regardless of the site conditions. In addition, I keep everything in the pockets of my vest so I always have a stylus, markers, flagging, couple 60d nails, field book, radio, etc.
especially the zombie housewives..
exactly!!! ME too...
I recall...as a young party chief....working for a company that also employed one of the first party chiefs that I worked under years before...
He sort of looked like Kenny Rogers at his peak....
Women that called the cops on me...would invite him in for coffee....
Make sure these younger Guys who think Its cool to wear your Ipod and listen to music while you topo Is unacceptable! your sense of hearing is very important IE: car leaving the roadway twoards you, Emergency crews haulin Ass to an emergency scene,etc... ipod can wait till they get home or whatever its just not worth it.
Just the vibrations from walking in mature forests can bring down a Widow Maker. Don't ever lean on a snag.