Equipment at height not properly secured
- Safety Flash
- Published on 29 February 2012
- Generated on 23 January 2026
- IMCA SF 02/12
- 2 minute read
A member has reported an incident in which tools were found inappropriately secured above a pedestrian walkway.
What happened?
A slip-in spade was found tied to a hand rail with a badly chafed rope. A piece of thin copper wire had been used to compensate for the poor condition of the rope. At the time of the observation, the copper wire had started to corrode and did not appear to be a sufficient method for securing the spade.
The location of the handrail was outside the outer boundary of the decking. This overhang meant that the decking would have provided no protection had the spade become unsecured and had fallen. Directly below the spade was a pedestrian walkway as indicated by yellow markings.
The spade was removed immediately and the observation was reported. There were no injuries.
Spade secured to handrail
Spade secured to handrail
Spade secured to handrail and view to deck below
Our Member concluded:
This observation and subsequent action to eliminate the hazard undoubtedly prevented a near miss or injury to personnel had the spade fallen.
Members are encouraged to forward this information to offshore personnel as a reminder to properly secure equipment and tools when working at height.
Further information on safe working at height can be found in the following IMCA safety promotional material:
- Working at height (pocket card)
- Avoiding dropped objects (poster, pocket card)
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