Fire, Electricity & Hazardous Substances

You work in a care home. Who does fire safety law treat as the 'responsible person' for the premises?

• AThe longest-serving employee, who knows the building best
• BThe local fire and rescue authority, which inspects the premises
• CEach member of staff, who must assess the fire risk themselves
• DYour employer, or anyone else who has control of the premises✓

Answer: Under fire safety law the 'responsible person' for a workplace is the employer, the owner, the landlord, an occupier or anyone else with control of the premises, such as a facilities or building manager. That person must carry out and regularly review a written fire risk assessment, tell staff about the risks identified, put fire safety measures in place, plan for an emergency and give staff fire safety instruction and training. The fire and rescue authority inspects premises rather than being responsible for them, and individual staff are not each expected to assess the fire risk.

You notice the fire exit from the shop stockroom was chained shut overnight to deter thieves and nobody has unlocked it. Which GOV.UK requirement does this breach?

• AFire doors must be wedged open all day
• BAll fire escapes must be able to open easily✓
• CFire exits only need checking at the yearly drill
• DFire exits must stay locked while trading

Answer: GOV.UK requires regular checks to confirm that all fire escapes can be opened easily and that all escape routes are clear with the floor in good condition. A chained fire exit fails that check outright and would trap people in an emergency. Keeping exits locked contradicts the requirement that they open easily, automatic fire doors must close correctly rather than be wedged open, and the checks are a regular duty rather than something left to the yearly drill.

How often, as a minimum, does GOV.UK say your workplace should hold a fire drill?

• AAt least once a week
• BAt least once a year✓
• CAt least twice a year
• DAt least once a month

Answer: GOV.UK says a workplace should carry out at least one fire drill per year and record the results, keeping them as part of the fire safety and evacuation plan. New staff must be trained in fire safety when they start work, and all employees must be told about any new fire risks. Monthly or weekly drills go beyond the stated minimum, and twice a year is not the figure GOV.UK gives.

According to HSE, what causes most of the fatal electrical accidents at work each year?

• AContact with overhead power lines✓
• BShocks from static electricity
• CDamaged extension leads in offices
• DWiring a plug incorrectly

Answer: Over half of the fatal electrical accidents at work each year are caused by contact with overhead power lines. Electricity can flash over from overhead lines even when plant or equipment does not touch them, so the lines may need switching off or a safe working distance agreed with their owners before work starts nearby. Extension leads are particularly liable to damage and static can ignite an explosive atmosphere, but neither is the main cause of deaths, and wiring a plug badly is dangerous without being what kills most people.

A colleague working from a stepladder gets a shock from a faulty drill. Why does HSE warn that the shock itself may not be the only injury?

• AThe heat of the shock sets the casing of the drill alight
• BThe current keeps flowing once the drill has been unplugged
• CMuscle spasms can stop them letting go and cause a fall✓
• DThe static charge will stay in the ladder for several hours

Answer: An electric shock often causes painful muscle spasms strong enough to break bones or dislocate joints, and this loss of muscle control means the person cannot let go of the live item. Someone working at height may then fall, or be thrown into nearby machinery, which is why HSE says shocks from faulty equipment lead to falls from ladders, scaffolds and other work platforms. Static lingering in a ladder, current continuing after unplugging and the casing catching fire are not effects HSE describes.

The kettle in the staff kitchen has a split cable with bare wires showing. What does HSE say should happen to it?

• AIt is wrapped with insulating tape over the split, then used until a replacement arrives
• BIt is used only by someone standing on a rubber mat, which insulates them from the floor
• CIt is fitted with a new plug and a shorter cable by whoever is free at tea break
• DIt is taken out of use, labelled 'DO NOT USE' and kept secure for a competent person✓

Answer: Suspect or faulty electrical equipment should be taken out of use, labelled 'DO NOT USE' and kept secure until it has been examined by a competent person. Damaged sections of cable must be replaced completely, and repairs should only be done by someone competent, so a tea-break rewiring by whoever is free is not acceptable. Insulating tape over bare wires and standing on a rubber mat both leave a dangerous kettle in service.

You are asked to use a mains-powered tool inside a steel tank on a damp day. Why does HSE single this out as a high-risk situation?

• AIn a cramped space the tool overheats faster, so its plastic casing melts and catches fire
• BIn a steel tank the mains voltage doubles, so any shock would be twice as strong as usual
• CIn a steel tank the walls absorb the current, so a fault would go unnoticed for hours
• DIn a cramped space full of earthed metalwork, a fault would make a shock very hard to avoid✓

Answer: The risk of injury from electricity is greatest in harsh conditions such as wet surroundings, outdoors, and cramped spaces with a lot of earthed metalwork like the inside of a tank, where a fault would make a shock very difficult to avoid. HSE's answer is to reduce the voltage, for example by using battery-operated tools, which are safest, or tools designed for a 110 volt centre-tapped-to-earth supply. Steel walls do not absorb current or double the mains voltage, and the danger is electric shock rather than a melting casing.

You have been handling a solvent-based cleaner in the warehouse and go straight to eat your sandwich without washing your hands. Which route of exposure does HSE say this creates?

• ASwallowing the chemical transferred from your hands✓
• BBreathing in the vapour the cleaner gives off as it dries
• CPuncturing your skin on a sharp edge of the container
• DSplashing the chemical into your eyes while pouring

Answer: People transfer chemicals from their hands to their mouths by eating, smoking and similar habits without washing first, which is the swallowing route of exposure. HSE lists five routes: breathing in, skin contact, swallowing, contact with the eyes and skin puncture, and the sandwich scenario is swallowing because the cleaner rides in on unwashed hands. Vapour, a sharp edge and a splash into the eyes are different routes and are not what eating without washing creates.

A new floor stripper arrives with a hazard symbol on its label and you want to know what the dangers are. Where does HSE say to concentrate?

• ASections 4 to 8 of the safety data sheet
• BThe delivery note that arrived with the order
• CSections 2 and 16 of the safety data sheet✓
• DThe warranty card packed inside the box

Answer: When a product is 'dangerous for supply' its label carries one or more hazard symbols and, by law, the supplier must provide a safety data sheet. Sections 2 and 16 of the sheet tell you what the dangers are, while sections 4 to 8 cover emergencies, storage and handling, and HSE also says to read the hazard statement on the packaging. Delivery notes and warranty cards say nothing about health risks.

Your employer cannot eliminate a harmful substance from a process. Which control does HSE rank next?

• AProviding protective equipment, such as gloves and a respirator
• BExtracting the emissions close to the source, such as with an extraction hood
• CUsing a safer form of the product, such as paste instead of powder✓
• DKeeping few workers in harm's way, such as by using a rota

Answer: HSE's order of priority for controlling hazardous substances starts with eliminating the harmful product and using a safer one, followed by using a safer form of the product, such as a paste rather than a powder. Changing the process, enclosing it, extracting emissions near the source and having as few workers in harm's way come next, with personal protective equipment last. Extraction, reducing the number of people exposed and PPE are all lower down the list than choosing a safer form.

You are using a lathe fitted with an extraction enclosure and notice the airflow indicator is no longer giving the right reading. What should you do?

• AWarn your supervisor that the control seems to be faulty✓
• BSwitch the extraction off and rely on your gloves and mask
• CCarry on, because the enclosure alone will contain the mist
• DOpen the enclosure straight away to let the mist clear faster

Answer: Where control measures are in place, HSE says it is important to use them properly and to warn supervisors if anything appears to be wrong. The airflow indicator is one of the daily checks that confirms the extraction is working, so a wrong reading means the control may have failed and needs reporting before you continue. Carrying on, opening the enclosure early or switching the extraction off and relying on gloves and a mask all expose you to cutting-fluid mist.

You work in a busy hotel kitchen and your hands are wet for most of the day. Which work-related ill health does HSE link to wet working?

• ALeukaemia
• BSilicosis
• CDermatitis✓
• DMesothelioma

Answer: Wet working, for example in catering and cleaning, can cause dermatitis, a skin disease. HSE also lists flowers, bulbs, fruit and vegetables, metalworking fluids and prolonged contact with wet cement as causes of dermatitis, so wet hands all day are a real hazard rather than a minor nuisance. Silicosis is a lung disease from stone or concrete dust, mesothelioma is a cancer caused by asbestos, and leukaemia is linked to benzene in crude oil.

You are a maintenance worker asked to drill into a ceiling panel in an office block. Which fact about the building should make you think asbestos could be present?

• AThe panel has been painted white rather than left bare
• BThe office was fully redecorated during the year 2015
• CThe block has more than three storeys above the ground
• DThe building was built or refurbished before 2000✓

Answer: Asbestos can be present today in any building built or refurbished before the year 2000. When materials containing asbestos are disturbed or damaged, fibres are released into the air and cause serious disease when inhaled, so the age of a building is the warning sign to check before drilling into it. The colour of the paint, the number of storeys and a recent redecoration tell you nothing about what the panel is made of.

A colleague says there is no point worrying about asbestos because you would feel ill straight away if it were harming you. What does HSE say?

• AIt was banned in 2000, so any material still in a building must be a safe modern substitute
• BThe fibres stay on the skin for years and cause a form of dermatitis that cannot be treated
• CIt only harms people who also smoke, so non-smokers can safely disturb the material
• DThe diseases take a long time to develop and once diagnosed it is often too late to act✓

Answer: Asbestos-related diseases do not affect you immediately; they often take a long time to develop, and once diagnosed it is often too late to do anything. Fibres released when asbestos materials are disturbed can cause mesothelioma, asbestos-related lung cancer, asbestosis and pleural thickening, which is why HSE says to protect yourself now rather than wait for symptoms. Asbestos damages the lungs rather than the skin, non-smokers are harmed too (smokers are simply at much greater risk of lung cancer), and old material still in a building is asbestos, not a safe substitute.