Here is a message from the PAO: read second sentence: does it make sense?
You cannot be wearing yyour seat belt when exiting your vehicle!
E-LINE: MESSAGE FROM THE DIRECTOR: VEHICLE SAFETY ISSUES CONTINUE
Laboratory colleagues:
Last year we had the first and only fatality on site in the history
of the Lab. You will remember that one of our colleagues was not
wearing his seat belt when exiting the running vehicle he was driving
onsite.
We continue to hear about situations where employees are involved
with dangerous moving vehicular situations. There have been several
recent incidents of employees exiting running vehicles. Thankfully,
no one was injured but there were near misses.
I have made the error of exiting running vehicles myself. I can say
from my own personal experience that changing 40-plus-years of
ingrained habits requires constant attention and vigilance. It takes
great self-awareness to break bad habits. Personal and work safety
includes an enormous spectrum of activities and discipline. But it
can be the difference between life and death.
22 comments:
Is there any truth to the rumor that security guards will soon be issuing tickets to people who get out of running vehicles in order to open their trunks for a quick search?
It is always sad when you have a loss of life, but what level should we seek to minimize the danger we experience every day. Should we all make right turns to avoid the dangerous left turn situations; surely we can get to where we want to go by only making right turns. Should we have separate driving paths for large and small vehicles? Should we; could we; of course we can, but to what degree. I don’t know for sure, but I think that there might be a greater risk walking through the parking lot and getting hit than being run over by the running vehicle you were going to drive.
I usually let my vehicle run when they are cold so that they will warm up and clear the windows and so that I do not have to drive with my coat on. If I have to stay in the vehicle while it is warming up, it more likely that I will start driving the vehicle before the window are clear. I might be safer for me, but not for people walking through he parking lot or crossing the street. Maybe we need to have elevated walkways in parking lots and over streets. That would be really safe. Of course we would have to have them enclosed so that we don’t trip and fall off.
It was terrible, but enough is enough.
So... I take it, we should try to exit our running vehicles while our seat belts are still attached?
I guess I'll have to make sure that the belt is attached VERY loosely!
I'm not sure, but I think leaving a running vehicle unattended is illegal.
This similar to the quality of management we're getting at LANL, particularly in business operational areas. It sounds like LLNS is using the same recipe for success in bringing in its 'visiting' managers, too.
LANS is now finding how good they really are. Safety measures are deteriorating and management doesn't know why.
One contributing factor they can't bring themselves to acknowledge is that paper doesn't make anyone safe.
Do you ever get the feeling that George is a lot like Arthur Carlson from WKRP in Cincinnati? Amiable but clueless.
I understand that this type of incident will never be allowed to happen again as all the perpetrators have been or are in the process of being apprehended....the Silverado pickup trucks I mean! Now that government owns GM I wonder if they will be retrained to do something else at the lab....maybe working in the cafeteria?
NIF?
The decline of intelligence continues.
February 28, 2010 7:38 AM
Security says that leaving a vehicle unoccupied and running is a violation of the CA Moter Vehicle Code.
I'll bet that the Dirctor's Office revises its procedures so that three more people need to proofread GM's correspondence.
Not such a bad idea. Would love to apply for one of those positions so I can work in B111 and get those nice salaries.
February 28, 2010 8:27 PM
I thought so. George admits that he broke the law. Even worse, he admits that it is a "habit". Boy, if any one of us shot our mouth off like that we would be hauled over to security and festooned with citations. I have never left my vehicle running unattended, what seems to be George's problem?
There is a California Vehicle code which indicates that you must be in or about you vehicle when it is running. This is for non-commercial vehicle. I think it has to do with an unattended vehicle that has the engine running. What’s strange is that most automobile manufacturers offer a remote start feature on the high end models that allow you to start you vehicle without being in it. That said, if you are loading a running truck or wiping off the windshield of a running vehicle you are considered to be about the vehicle.
Seems that lab might create their own law that will require the driver and I suspect all passengers to be seated with their seat belts fastened whenever the engine is running. Perhaps we should turn off our electronic equipment, bring our seats to the upright and locked position, stow away our items, and read the safety pamphlet. Do we get flight attendants with that…
"LANS is now finding how good they really are. Safety measures are deteriorating and management doesn't know why." - 8:08 AM
Sure they do. It's all the employees' fault!
Don't worry, though. More rounds of employee beatings, online training and additional levels of highly compensated executive management should help fix it up.
I hear vehicle qualification cards are coming soon whereby only those vehicles listed on the card are the ones you'll be allowed to operate. To drive any other vehicle not listed on your card will require additional on-hands training and personal instructions by a qualified vehicle operator most likely your first line supervisor. At that time your card will be updated with the vehicle make, model and VIN #.
Did you all catch the email circulating around the lab that describes the near miss incident at site 300? There is something fishy about this email. Either somebody was standing right there when this happened and reported it or the individual involved reported him or herself. Either scenario seems unlikely. I think it is made up myself.
March 3, 2010 6:29 AM
Well we came close to that today. Tomorrow I go for a vehicle briefing to assure I know where all the features are on the trucks we drive and then fill out an extensively long form giving me authorization to drive the vehicle assigned to my area. No qualification card yet or having to sweep the badge before the ignition works, but only after wireless verification to our computer based training center assures my annual training / refresher course is up to date. We're well on our way to an AVID chip implant in the palm of your hand with an active GPS transponder similar to the one scheduled to be in all cell phones, pda's and wireless devices in next two years so you can be located within 12" when making a 911 call. Hell, they can already open the mic on your cell phone at will, why not know everything.
All this drama over vehicle safety is management's response to try and stop workers who simply act stupid. From what I heard, the driver in this most recent incident actually exited his vehicle to look for the parking brake release mechanism, while it was running, and in REVERSE! Guess what he did next when he actually found the release lever? You got it, he pulled the lever and released the parking brake, potentially putting himself at risk to become fatality #2 at LLLNL.
March 4, 2010 6:10 AM
Why do we let nature takes it course. We have way to many people on this earth as it is anyway. We need to stop interfering with natures process of elimination.
The best of the best, center of excellence, and we can’t even drive a truck without screwing up. God, I hope the world is not watching.
March 4, 2010 10:40 PM
Believe me. It didn't happen. It is all a fabrication which is designed to place somebody in a favorable light...know what I mean?
When I first came to this Lab, we were trying to design the most sophisticated nuclear weapons possible.
Now we are looking at the design of emergency brakes in pickup trucks.
If you can't be with the one you love, love the one you're with.
Previous Lab directors have built ASCI, NAI, obtained funding for and constructed NIF. GHM's claim to fame? Layoffs and safety videos.
You may scoff at Miller's accomplishments of overseeing layoffs and producing tearful videos,
but he's gotten better pay than those who guided the lab in greater scientific accomplishments.
It says a great deal about where Congress/NNSA/DOE put their priorities.
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