Drivers – be careful

Posted on March 12, 2008 Updated on June 6, 2015

HSE Alert – Geyser – a home equipment to be handled with caution

Posted on March 11, 2008 Updated on June 6, 2015

HSE Alert – Geyser – a home equipment to be handled with caution

HSE Alert – Geyser – a home equipment to be handled with caution
A geyser provides a ready-to-use stock of hot water that can be set thermostatically to give a constant temperature, normally between 60-65°C, regardless of the outside temperature. Geysers are hard-working appliances – think of how much hot water you and your family use in a day. Geyser bursts can be dangerous and many times Geyser burst will be so powerful that all doors and windows along with door frames would be broken. It is also likely to cause cracks in the walls of the house.

The typical geyser installation is on the roof (preferably above the ceiling). In the event of a burst, water can pour down the ceilings, affecting light fittings, walls and furniture and furnishings in the room below.

In general, Geysers burst for a number of reasons – most often because of human error, that is, either due to:

– poor installation,
– the use of the incorrect valves,
– incorrect setting of thermostat
– wear and tear
– or the absence or plugging of safety and pressure-reducing valves

The burst usually happens because of an incorrect setting of the thermostat, which is an instrument used to control the heating temperature and the steaming pressure of the geyser. If the thermostat is badly regulated, it will incorrectly control the heating levels of hot water in the geyser, subsequently causing an explosion due to the amount of steam accumulated in the geyser.

Insurers all over the world has experienced many claims over the decades as a result of a burst geyser. Over the past few years, several people have been killed as a result of burst geysers and other accidents caused by poor plumbing installations.

In order to reduce these types of accidents due to lack of awareness, here are some handy tips to make sure your geyser won’t burst:

– Make sure you call a good plumber either to fix the old geyser, or to install a new one. The emphasis here is on the word ‘good’.

– It is always important to have a specialist to install your geyser to avoid a household disaster.

– Always take a proactive approach, if possible, by consulting a good plumber and instituting a preventative maintenance programme to protect the geyser and geyser valve. Timely anode replacement and a regular geyser-valve clean-up can save countless problems.

– If you use an unqualified plumber to install your geyser and it bursts, you are putting your life and the lives of others at risk.

– Have your geyser and pipes insulated, as well as the ceiling.

– Urgent action is needed if you hear a rumbling from the ceiling. This could be a signal that water in the geyser has begun to boil. Alternatively, steam may gush out when you open your hot-water taps.

– If these danger signals occur, switch off the geyser electrical isolator on the main distribution board.

– Now turn off the water at the main meter box. Most homes have a stopcock fitted to the inlet side of the geyser.

– If possible, look to see whether the geyser, the pressure-reducing valve or the pipes are leaking. This helps the plumber identify the problem.

– If a replacement geyser has to be fitted, it may also be advisable to fit a drip tray beneath the geyser. The tray’s outlet pipe will carry away a lot of the water in the event of a geyser burst at some stage in the future.

– If your geyser bursts, you should switch off the electricity mains immediately.

The reasons for this are twofold:

– Firstly, if the geyser element continues to heat up even if there is no water in the geyser, you could burn the house down. This is like switching on a huge, empty kettle.

– Secondly, water leaking from the geyser could get into electrical systems and cause a short circuit, and possible a fire.

– Find the water mains and switch it off. This will stop new water from running into the geyser and leaking all over your house. If you don’t know where your water mains are, make a point of finding it out today. You can phone the water department of the local municipality, but by the time they arrive, you might all be floating out the front door. So, do this check once you move in to a new apartment or house.

– If you are living in a flat, contact your neighbours, as water may be cascading into their flat. They don’t want to find that out when they step into three inches of water when they get up in the morning.

– If the area where the geyser burst is sopping wet, try and mop it all up with towels, mops or anything that is absorbent. You want to minimise damage to your floors and your furniture, or whatever else is close by.

– Buckets and plastic containers will also help to catch up some of the falling water.

– Although out of sight, the home’s plumbing system should never be out of mind, because when something goes wrong, the problem can take on nightmarish proportions. Consider the geyser, for example.

The shock of a workplace suicide

Posted on March 11, 2008

The shock of a workplace suicide
By Carole Spiers, Special to Gulf News Published: March 11, 2008, 00:41

A suicide in the workplace is fortunately a very rare occurrence. But when it does happen, it sets up uncomfortable guilt-feelings among the suicide’s colleagues, employers, friends and family, who all may wonder whether they could have done more, or anything, to prevent it.

This kind of agonising is a reaction that is very usual in such sad circumstances – but such guilty feelings are certainly inappropriate.

The ‘final straw’ that led to the irrevocable decision to take his or her own life, in most cases is never known. The suicide may have been triggered by events unconnected with work.

In all organisations, the most constructive course is to make a formal study of suicide intervention as part of routine stress-management training. Managers can be taught how to identify possible signs of a potential suicide; how to arrange counselling for any such vulnerable person; know what to say to the rest of the workforce in the event of such an incident; train your HR personnel to be aware and source specialist expertise from outside, when necessary.

An individual at risk of suicide may be depressed and withdrawn, unable to relate to those around them and increasingly liable to be absent from work. The risk is obviously greater in the wake of a traumatic event such as illness, bereavement, redundancy or when diagnosed as clinically depressed.

Unfortunately, a confusing factor is that a suicidal person can sometimes appear to be recovering from a desperate and depressed state of mind, when completely unexpectedly, they suddenly take their own life.

What, then, is the best kind of intervention? In principle, an acutely depressed and/or suicidal person, needs someone to be there for them, ready to listen patiently to what may or may not be a complex story, and to accept them as someone who is normal but who needs to be helped over what seems, to them, to be an unlivable-with position.

What they don’t need is a brisk pep-talk, a sermon, an appeal to ‘snap out of it’, or equally the too-easy reassurance that everything will be all right.

Sympathetic and attentive listening is essential – making the person feel they are being taken seriously. Experience shows that, in many instances, it is important to have access to the best professional back-up you can source.

The other day I was presented with the case of a van-driver who had tried to hang himself in his van – which, had he succeeded, would have involved his employers in a full inquest. By moving immediately into our emergency procedure, we were able to minimise the chance of another attempt. We provided immediate crisis intervention support, including access to a 24-hour counselling hotline. We also briefed his line-manager on how best to handle this particular situation, which had, in fact, been sparked by the recent suicide of the driver’s own son, for which he blamed himself.

Key points: Caring for lives

Identifying suicidal symptoms in advance can be formally taught.
Sympathetic and attentive listening is essential.
Expert professional backup should be ready to deploy, without delay, when necessary.

– The writer is a BBC broadcaster and motivational speaker, with 20 years’ experience as CEO of Carole Spiers Group, an international stress consultancy based in London.

Driving tips for foggy weather

Posted on March 7, 2008

Driving tips for foggy weather

By Alia Al Theeb, Staff Reporter, GULF NEWS Published: March 11, 2008, 16:35

Here are a few driving tips that everyone should follow to avoid accidents in this foggy weather:

* Ask yourself if your journey is really necessary before driving in thick fog.

* Avoid travelling in a car if you can.

* Make sure the headlights and the front windows of the car are clean before starting the journey.

* Reduce speed, leave enough space between vehicles and avoid overtaking.

* Do not change lanes unless necessary.

* Turn on headlights (but low beams only).

* Avoid turning on hazard lights, except in emergency cases. Using hazard lights all the time prevents a motorist from alerting other motorists to an emergency.

* Turn on the appropriate fog lights when driving.

* Make sure the window wipers work properly to constantly clean the window and have clear visibility.

* Be aware at all times for danger such as a vehicle suddenly braking in the front or another vehicle entering from a side entrance. This means not using mobile phones when driving, for example.

* Allow more time to complete a journey, especially during low visibility.