OXNARD/SAN FRANCISCO -- State Compensation Insurance Fund and the California Utility Public Safety Alliance will jointly sponsor a safety seminar about the dangers of working near overhead and underground utilities including gas and electrical lines – on September 6 in Oxnard. The seminar, “Contractor Beware: Safety around Overhead and Underground Gas and Electric Lines,” is offered free-of-charge. It is designed for workers and contractors in the agricultural and construction industries so that they can avoid making costly mistakes that can lead to death or injury as well as financial liability.

When a worker or the equipment he is using comes into contact with an overhead electrical line, a shock can occur that can lead to severe burns or death. According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), electrocutions from contact with overhead power lines result in an average of 128 work-related fatalities each year. Agricultural workers are particularly subject to the hazards of electricity because tall equipment, such as grain augers, combines, and raised dump truck beds can become entangled in overhead power lines. The National Agricultural Safety Database reports that more than 60 electrocutions per year occur on farms.

If a worker strikes an underground gas line, it can cause an explosion that can kill or injure workers as well as others in the vicinity. Hitting an underground electric line can cause power outages, and can also shock or kill equipment operators. In addition, contractors who do not protect underground facilities during excavations may be held financially liable for damages. 

In order to prevent death and serious injury, contractors and employees working around natural gas and power lines need to follow safe practices and procedures to identify these hazards in advance. The seminar will focus on explaining the dangers involved when working around overhead electrical and underground gas lines, and how to avoid these dangers, and what to do if an accident does occur at the work location.

Featured speakers are State Fund safety expert Pedro Acero and Charles Basham, Manager of Public Safety for Southern California Edison (SCE). Acero will conduct the Spanish portions of the seminar and Basham will present the sessions in English.

The seminar will be held at State Fund’s Oxnard District Office, 2901 N. Ventura Rd., 2nd Floor Conference Room.  The seminar schedule is as follows and will be conducted in both English and Spanish:

Construction
9:00 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. (English)
10:00 a.m. - 11:00 a.m. (Spanish)

Agriculture
1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. (English)
2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. (Spanish)

To register, please call Alberto Aldana at (805) 988-5270, or send a fax to his attention at (805) 988-5201.  To register via email, please email apaldana@scif.com.

The State Fund seminar is supported by a coalition of public utility companies: Pacific Gas & Electric, Southern California Edison, City of Anaheim, Sacramento Municipal Utility District, California Public Utilities Commission - Utilities Safety & Reliability Branch, San Diego Gas and Electric, Southern California Gas Company, and IID Energy, a division of Imperial Irrigation District. The event is sponsored by the Western Regional Master Builders Association, Golden State Builders Exchanges, and the California Farm Bureau Federation.

The Oxnard seminar is part of a series of educational programs State Compensation Insurance Fund is holding throughout the state in order to help employers create safe workplaces. State Fund has the largest safety and health services program among California workers’ compensation insurance carriers.

Additional seminars in this series of educational programs are also available.

EDITOR’S NOTE: Established by the California Legislature in 1914, San Francisco-based State Compensation Insurance Fund is a self-supporting, nonprofit, public enterprise that provides workers’ compensation insurance coverage to employers.