Is Roofing a Dangerous Job?

Safety harnesses, heavy treaded boots, rope grabs and ropes, hardhats, thick leather gloves, and edge guards are some of safety gear and equipment that a roofer need and this is for one good reason. Roofing can be an extremely dangerous job.

Almost everyone will need to have a roofing job done at one point in life. However, not a lot of people know and even understand the risks involved with roofing. It is already bad enough that an accidental fall might lead to your death.

However, roofers also need to face many other hazards and challenges while doing their job. Injuries from roofing debris, volatile chemicals and tars, burns, and electrocution from close contact with an exposed power line are only some of the many risks that a roofer faces every time they go up your roof.

Studies have revealed that roofers rank high on work-related death rate in the construction industry with approximately 50 worker fatalities every year.

If you are still wondering what makes roofing a very hazardous and even a life-threatening job sometimes, better read on to know the answer.

Falls

Numbers have revealed that there are almost 50 deaths that occur in the roofing industry and 37 of these are the result of fatal falls. Based from this study, it was concluded that there was a possibility that the workers lacked the essential fall safety and protection equipment while doing their job.

Other cases of falling that contribute to the rather brutal numbers include falling off of scaffolds, ladders, and skylights. Residential roofers are also discovered to have two times the percentage of deadly falls from ladders as compared to all other roofing workers since their work more frequently involve the use of ladders. On the other hand, commercial roofers have the highest number of falls through skylights. Other fatal falls are falling through roof surfaces and roof openings.

To be more specific, most of the fatal falls happen from roof edges that could have been avoided with the help of safety equipment such as safety nets, guardrails, and fall-arrest systems. It is also recommended to use warning lines during roofing projects to allow the workers to indicate roof-edge danger zones as well as safety monitors to alert workers if they are at risk of a potential fall.

Electrocution

There is no doubt that falling is probably the most obvious and concerning hazard when it comes to roofing. However, a lot of people are actually surprised to know that the danger of fatal electrocution ranks second on the list. This is another serious working fatality that all workers must know to keep themselves safe and avoid paying the ultimate price.

Electrocutions make up a significant number in the number of roofer fatalities every year. The specifics involve roofers who come into ill-fated contact with the overheard power lines. Some other cases of electrocutions also involve roofers that got struck by lightning that can pose another dangerous on the job risk.

All roofing works are dangerous so when the time comes that you need to replace your roof or repair your roof, it is best to leave it to the hands of the experts.

 

from
https://www.skylineswindonroofing.co.uk/blog/is-roofing-a-dangerous-job-uk/