Good day guys,

Anybody with a Toyota bus for sale? I want to use it for school bus.

Pls contact

hamshol@gmail.com.

The NIGERIAN RED CROSS is organizing the First ever walk for fire safety in Nigeria during this Harmmattan period to reduce the rate of fire occurrence in Lagos Island, most especially in the Markets.
Be part of it.

EID SAFETY

The Eid celebration of the Muslims is one of the many celebrations of human race as ordered by Allah on the Father of Faith and practiced by Holy Prophet Muhammed {SAW}.
This celebration just like every other celebration has come with its own hazards which require identification, acknowledgement, analysis and evaluation, awareness, respect and documentation. These hazards do not result from the act of celebrations but mostly from human negligence and error. Some of the hazards that come from this celebration include: fire and explosion, manual handling, repetitive injury, use of excessive force, biological hazards, sharp objects, slip, trips and fall, nip injury and stress.

FIRE AND EXPLOSION

There has been a paradigm change in the way Muslims cook the meat during sallah, before now majority will use fire wood and charcoal for cooking but today the use of Gas Cooking system has taken over. Using gas comes with its own hazards and majorly resulting from its use, just like the way majority of people use their cooking gas at home, keeping the cylinder too close to the burner, this same action has surfaced during the Eid celebrations. Regulations requires that a minimum distance of 11meters be kept between the burner and the cylinder. If you look at the way it is done today in our society, the cylinder is place almost side by side with the burner this singular act or omission can result into a disastrous explosion killing people up to 2/3miles away depending on the size of the cylinder.

Do you remember that camp gas you use at home which I have always condemned? Eid period is a very good time to use it, because you will be using it in the open and not inside the four walls of your kitchen. In addition to the above, ensure that you use a hose that is not compromised, use a regulator that is functioning optimally, ensure that your cylinder is not expired and do not use bar soap to patch any part of the cooking system.
EID celebration requires carriage, lifting, pushing and dragging of cooking utensils, the ram {KILLED AND LIVING}. Manual handling can impact the health and wellbeing of the Muslims during this period and also one the reasons a Muslim will have hours or days of body aching after the celebration. One way to avoid this pain is to understand your limitation and do not go above the threshold. Do no lift anything above 25kg all alone call a second person for assitance, ensure you have a good grip of the object you want to carry, ensure that your lifting environment is not slippery and hazardous, ensure that you don’t handle hot liquid carelessly, follow the proper lifting techniques, make sure you lift with the muscles of your thigh and not the muscles of your back.

One of the principles of the EID sacrifice is to use very sharp knife so that the animal is killed easily and with mercy. In addition to this objective, sharp knives and cutlass prevent the use of excessive force which can result into people cutting themselves and others who are helping to hold the meat or ram. While butchering the ram into smaller units be aware of nip points between two bones and protruding bones. If possible the act of using the mouth to pump the ram should be discouraged, this act has a big potential for transfer of zoonotic diseases from animals to man. If one man contract this disease it can easily be transmitted to other human through contact and other means.

Be conscious of sharp objects such as blades used while removing the hair from the animal, do not drop soap used during the hair removal process on the floor, remove fats from the floor so as to avoid slip, trip and fall. ensure children keep safe distance from you so they don’t touch the blood and other potential disease causing agents.

After the whole killing and cooking operations remember to return the environment back to the way you met it, clean the floor and ensure proper waste disposal while also disinfecting the sorrunding.

One of the teachings of Islam is not to over feed, do not eat too much of the meat as this can result into damage of your liver { too much protein}, AVOID DRUGS AND ALCOHOL, be moderate with fizzy drinks and most importantly take a lot of water to flush your system during and after the celebration.

I wish us all a happy and incident free EID festivities.

May Allah accept our sacrifice.

Hammed Usman { IDIPNEBOSH, GIFireE, ANISP}
FIRE SAFE INSTRUCTOR II EMERGENCY RESPONDER II
FIRE AID INSTRUCTOR II HEALTH AND SAFETY EXPERT II

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Do you have this door for sale? I am looking for used one as I can't afford it new. Contact me via whatsapp on 08028558872.

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There has so much noise about an attempt to Islamize Nigeria. Because of the alleged removal of CRK from the syllabus. This news is false.

CRK hasn't been removed from the syllabus.
What the new curriculum did was to merge related courses under one group.
The new subject referred to by this group comprises:
Christian Religious Studies or
Islamic Religious Studies
+ Social Studies + Civil Education + Security Education.

This combined subjects is now called Religious and National Values Education.

According to the curriculum, each school DECIDES to do CRS or IRS as it has always been.

For example, this new curriculum was used in the just concluded, NECO exam.

In the NECO exam, the question paper comprises of CRS, IRS, Soc stud, Civil Ed and Security Ed. The instruction on the question paper stated clearly that each candidate(s) is(are) required to do EITHER CRS or IRS (see the snapped pic of the front page of the JS 3 NECO)

Why the fuss?
Our country is already divided on many fronts, its unfair and unnecessary to create more means of division, most especially when its based on falsehood.

MAN HOLE COVER AWARENESS

A manhole (alternatively utility hole, cable chamber, maintenance hole, inspection chamber, access chamber, sewer hole, or confined space) is the top opening to an underground utility vault used to house an access point for making connections, inspection, valve adjustments or performing maintenance on underground and buried public utility and other services including water, sewers, telephone, electricity, storm drains, district heating and gas.

Manhole closings are protected by a manhole cover, a flat plug designed to prevent accidental or unauthorized access to the manhole. Those plugs are traditionally made of metal, but may be constructed from precast concrete, glass reinforced plastic or other composite material (especially in Europe, or where cover theft is of concern).

Manholes are usually outfitted with metal, polypropylene, or fiberglass steps installed in the inner side of the wall to allow easy descent into the utility space. Because of legislation restricting acceptable manual handling weights, Europe has seen a move toward lighter weight composite manhole cover materials, which also have the benefits of greater slip resistance and electrical insulating properties.

The access openings are usually circular in shape to prevent accidental fall of the cover into the hole.

Manholes are generally found in urban areas, in streets and occasionally under sidewalks. In rural and undeveloped areas, services such as telephone and electricity are usually carried on utility poles or even pylons rather than underground.

Just like every other industrial material tools/equipment, man hole covers come with their own safety challenges and issues. There are couple of hazards associated with them, some fatal and other risks of serious injuries and man hour lost due to manifestation of the hazard. Some of the risk of man hole covers include but not limited to electrocution, cover blow out, manual handling, hand tools, rusting and indirect risk of handing hand tools, heat exhaustion, stress etc.

Cover blow out: statistic has it that world over there is at least one recorded case of man hole cover blow out every day. Whenever there is a fault from the underground utility or installation, most especially a fault from an electrical source. Carbon monoxide {CO} is built up to a point where the CO/air mixture concentration is greater than or equals to 10%. At this point, all that is needed for an explosion to occur is a little spark which will surely come from the underground system itself. The explosion can throw the cover up to 20meters from the man hole surface into the air and any human, animal or object standing on the man hole at the time of the explosion can be seriously injured or killed. There has been reported cases of mischievous people putting fireworks into man hole all in the name of fun, trust me you can be killed instantly if stricken by the flying heavy metal cover.

Most man hole covers are made of Metal covering high voltage underground cables or telecoms cable. In the event of faulty connection, the cable may come in contact with the man hole cover electrocuting to death any life who stepped on it. In urban areas, stray voltage issues have become a significant concern for utilities. In 2004, Jodie S. Lane was electrocuted after stepping on a metal manhole cover, while walking her dog in New York City.

The minimum weight of a man hole cover is 55kg. this according to the Health and Safety Executives is too much of a weight to be lifted by one individual. It requires two or more people lifting one cover following the right lifting techniques or using a lifting aid.

The next time you see a man hole on the ground while walking or driving, have a second though before you step or drive over it as you will not want to be electrocuted, blown away or hit by a 55kg flying metal object.

Stay safe.

Hammed Usman {IDIPNEBOSH, GIFireE, ANISP}

HEALTH and SAFETY EXPERT II FIRE SAFETY INSTRUCTOR II FIRST AID INSTRUCTOR

08098558872

Sheconcept@gmail.com

Twitter:@hamshol

WORK WEAR.

If you work in the oil and gas field or any other associated work place where there is always a flammable atmosphere {ZONE ZERO} like oil depot, petrol station, gas dispensing company and dusty particulate area you may need to read this.

The material used for the production of your cloth is key to your safety, most especially during this harmattan period. Wearing fabrics made of materials other than Nomex and Kevlar can jeopardize your safety. For instance, fibers like those of wool and silk easily lose their moisture content and become charged to the point of igniting fire in a Zone Zero atmosphere like those mentioned above.

Most employers in Nigeria provide coverall made of cotton material which is just a little better than wool and silk. In the harmattan, the moisture retaining properties of cotton is reduced by the weather getting it easily charged up. Wearing charged fabric in an already charged atmosphere is a recipe for fire and explosion.

WHAT IS THE WAY OUT OF THIS DANGER?

The best thing to do as an employer of labour who cares about the life and welfare of his/her employees and also about his/her investment and meeting up with local and international statutory requirement is to provide for all the workers a NOMEX COVERALL. The Nomex Fibre is a registered trademark for flame-resistant meta-aramid material developed by DU-POINT in early 1960. It has excellent thermal, chemical, and radiation resistance.

When you think of Nomex, you probably think of firefighter apparel. But the inherent protection of Nomex is relied on by people and processes in a wide range of applications around the world.

In addition to the more than three million firefighters worldwide who are protected by apparel made with Nomex, there are millions of other people around the globe, including military personnel, police officers, auto racing teams and industrial workers, who rely on the inherent heat and flame resistant properties and durability of Nomex fiber to help keep them safe from the everyday hazards they face on the job.

Nomex also plays a critical role in helping to protect and improve the performance of a wide variety of things that are essential to our way of life, such as mass transit vehicles, wind turbine systems, aircraft components, electrical transformers and automotive components.

If your employer has provided cotton made coverall for you as your work wear, never despair there is a way out. You can maintain the property of your cotton fabric by giving it a special treatment while washing. All you need do is to wash your dirty coverall or a new coverall with a detergent of your choice but do not completely rinse out the detergent after washing. Allow some of the detergent remain on the fabric before drying, this treatment will allow the cotton fabric coverall to retain its moisture content during use thereby producing little or no charging.

USMAN HAMMED {IDIPNEBOSH, GIFireE, ANISP}

TEXTILE TECHNOLOGIST ! FIRE SAFETY EXPERT/INSTRUCTOR !

HEALTH AND SAFETY PROFFESIONAL !

FIRST AID INSTRUCTOR ! EMERGENCY RESPONDER !

08098558872.

Facebook- firefighters Nigeria, Hammed Usman

Twitter- @hamshol

Harmattan is one of the seasons in Nigeria. The Harmattan is a dry and dusty West African trade wind. It blows south from the Sahara into the Gulf of Guinea between the end of November and the middle of March. There are so many challenges one could face during this period like cracking of lips or breaking of lips, cold, dry skin, catarrh, cough and a lot more but among all, cold is the major problem.The cold weather and the heavy amount of foggy dust in the air can limit visibility and block the sun for several days, comparable to a heavy fog shows that the harmattan is here again. Some patients suffering from asthma, pneumonia and people who are prone to respiratory diseases often suffer much because of excess cold and dust.It is advisable to cover yourself well and wear thick cloth during this period so as to keep your body warm and protect yourself from cold. The dry, cold and dusty wind associated with Harmattan also triggers sickle cell crises in affected individuals.

Aside the health issue hamarttan is also a cause of most fire during this period as it easilly exposes our carelessness and non observance of fire safety pricnciple. For fire to start three things most bassically be present, fuel, heat n oxygen. All solid fuels has moisture in them and this is responsible for their high ignition temperature. Harmattan is xterised with moisture absorption a reason why our close gt dried faster than normal. The harmattan gt combustible materials de humidified lowering their ignition temperature thus making them easily combustible. So we must be very careful with ignition sources at home and at work.

Harmattan period is not the best time to wear fur and other artificial hair as they easily build up static charges. Perhaps a reason why most ladies scrach their here more during harmattan.

It is better you wear more of cotton fabrics during this period as cotton will conduct the least static charge during this period. When u wash ur cotton use detergent and dont wash off all the detergent. Detergent helps to reduce the rate of static charge build up during harmattan. This is very iportant for owners of petrol stations and tank farms to ensure this aspect of fire prevention during this period. Those that are responsible for ensuring that standards are met in our petrol stations and oil and gas industries should start thinking along this line.

To prevent fire during this period try adopt the following things

1. Never keep a naked flame
2. Switch off all electrical appliances when not I use
3. Do not overload electrical sockets
4. Be careful with ur decorations.
5. Pay attention to cooking
6. Never use camp gas in the house
7. Clear all Bush around your house.
8. Don't dispose cigarette butt without sniffing off the light.
9. Don't keep the fire works in the house
10. Have a fire extinguisher at home
11. Have a pre fire plan.
12. Practice fire drill at home
13. Most importantly teach everyone in your home about fire safety.

I hope dis helps. Enjoy the weather as we are product of our environment!

HAMMED USMAN(IDIPNEBOSH, GIFireE, ANISP)

FIRE SAFETY EXPERT ! HEALTH AND SAFERT PROFESSIONAL ! FIRST AID INSTRUCTOR ! EMERGENCY RESPONDER

hamshol@gmail.com

08098558872
08028558872
Twitter: @hamshol
Facebook: firefighters Nigeria

Tiffbuxas:
seriously.... do people read this looking posts??

I hope so

A holiday is a day set aside by custom or bylaw on which normal activities, especially business or work, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tradition of cultural or religious significance. Holidays may be designated by governments, religious institutions, or other groups or organizations. The degree to which normal activities are reduced by a holiday may depend on local laws, customs, the type of job being held or even personal choices.

Just like in the work place where accident is very prone, accident can even be more common and fatal during the holiday period. There has been recorded cases of fire incident, domestic accidents of various types, road accident, epidemic, rape, electrocution, robbery, domestic violence and just to mention but a few. Just as in the workplace, holiday incidents are preventable if all the precaution taken at workplace is taken when we are faced with similar incidents while on holidays. For example, at workplace all electrical wires are properly channeled through trucking or cable tray but while on a picnic we run wires exposed over the field. In this write a few of the causes of accidents during the holidays will be identified and properly managed so we can all have a beautiful holiday season devoid of any form of incidents.

FIRE SAFETY

The December/January period comes with harmattan which possess a great fire danger to every one most especially people decorating for Christmas celebration. They set up extra lighting, Christmas tree, fireworks, frying, roasting and usually long hours of cooking. These activities will strain the electrical installations {wire, sockets, switches, fuses etc.} in the house resulting into overloading and overheating which can lead to a serious fire outbreak in the home. To prevent fire from spoiling your fun during this holiday period adhere to the following tips

· Make sure you know the power consumption rate of the decorations you are buying during this period and know what rating of sockets best works for them to avoid overloading and over heating.
· Do not allow kids to handle fireworks without adult supervision
· As always keep matches and lighters away from children
· Do not give the kids the opportunity to cook all in the name of celebration except you will supervise them.
· To avoid electrocution, do not run wires over wet surface or use electrical appliances under the rain.
· Make sure you put off all fire made for cooking, roasting and frying after use.
· Make sure you use well maintained/good camp gas

PATHOGENIC TRANSFERS

During the holidays there is going to be a lot of free mixing, contact between different people, between people and animals, people and contaminated objects etc. These contacts may be during handshake, hug, sex, sharing objects, swimming, using the toilets, food, drinks and so on. Pathogenic organisms like virus, bacteria, and fungi can bring about different diseases such as HIV, Hepatitis, conjunctivitis; fungi infection, eczema etc. stick to the following to stay safe from pathogenic organism

Ø Adhere strictly to the principle of hand washing before eating, before and after using the toilet, before and after cooking, after returning from outing and before touching any opening in your body.
Ø Wash very well your eating and cooking utensils
Ø Note that the first 2 rolls of your tissue paper is potentially contaminated so avoid using this part of the tissue most especially if it is not the first use.
Ø When lodging in any hotel in the tropics, run all the taps for 10minutes before using the water. This is because the temperature in the tropics allows some certain organisms to grow and multiply easily.

DRIVING

Road accident in Nigeria cannot be overemphasized. Why? It is because road accident constitutes a menace in our modern day. Decaying infrastructure, over speeding, reckless driving among others are deficiencies that all road users including the government must seek to address; so as to reduce the high rate of accident on our roads. It is a pity and quite painful that out of 193 countries in the world Nigeria is rated 2nd highest of road accidents. Although, road accidents happen in both developed and developing countries, it is more in developing countries, most especially in Nigeria. For instance, in April 2016, not less than 142 people died in motor accident in just 15 days.

Globally

• 1.25 million die in road accidents every year

• A further 50 million are injured

• Africa has highest road traffic death rate of 24.1 per 100,000 population

• For every 1 person who dies in a road traffic crash, 20 are injured

• 1 in 20 of those injured are left with a disability

• 111 countries have a universal national access emergency number

• Only 59 countries have an ambulance service able to transfer over 75% of injured patients





HUMAN CAUSES OF ROAD ACCIDENT

ü Tailgating
ü Drunk driving
ü Distracted driving
ü Unsafe lane change
ü Over speeding
ü Fatigue/stress

Examples of distractions include talking or texting on mobile devices, including hands-free use , accessing Internet with mobile devices, eating, drinking, reading, or note taking, talking to passengers, adjusting mirrors, changing radio stations, applying make-up, adjusting/ correcting children etc.

Some strategies for safe driving:

· Be well rested before you start driving
· Eat lighter healthier meals before and during driving
· Maintain physical fitness
· Plan rest breaks into the trip
· If you feel tired while driving, take a
rest break
· Drive within the speed limit and at a safe speed {between 80 and 90}for different conditions
· Check the weather, road conditions, and traffic; adjust travel as needed
· Familiarize yourself with directions
· Inform others about your route and anticipated arrival time
· Keep safe distance of 4seconds from other vehicles ahead
· Proper maintenance of tires and tire air pressure will prevent blowout or a flat
· Periodic change of wiper blade is highly recommended, especially during the wet or rainy season
· Strictly adhere to the maintenance schedule as recommended by the manufacturer



Hammed Usman {IDipNebosh, GIFireE, ANISP}

Health and Safety Expert! Fire Safety Instructor!

First Aid Instructor! Emergency Responder!

Mobile: 08098558872

WhatsApp: 08028558872

Email: sheconcept@gmail.com

YABATECH FIRE INCIDENT

This is the second time YABATECH will be having this kind of fire incident in less than 10years, the first happened at the food village some years back and the response to the incident by the management was to strengthen the almost dead fire department. Today the fire department is as dead as it was before the first fire incident as the necessary mercenaries for effective fire prevention and fire emergency response are either lacking or inappropriate. YABATECH is not the only institution with this problem, sometimes last year; UNILAG had a fire incident which almost took the lives of 3 of their female students. The response of the school’s management to the incident is to purchase ‘’newly’’ refurbished fire truck, paint the fire station and re-employ the existing firemen. At least these two higher institutions of learning has an existing fire department, what do we say about many others in the country that do not have a functioning fire extinguisher not to talk of fire station? I did a research some years ago about occupational health and safety in Nigerian Higher Institution of learning using Ladoke Akintola University of technology as a case study, my observation made me to conclude that our schools are nothing but a disaster waiting to happen.

Now let’s look at what they did not get right between the food village fire and the yesterday’s fire incident in the school. The composition of the fire department is what worries me a lot, more that 50% of the firemen in that station are not competent to do the job, they are not trained. I was part of the team that trained the few competent ones working in that organization and they said that they had to sponsor themselves for the training in order to get promoted to the next level. A promotion only the chief fire officer got. The others are still on their pre training level even after they had to sponsor themselves for the training. They lost their money and time.

There was also a time that the management decides to install fire hydrant round the whole school, a project which was successful but with the major failure of not producing water. How will the fire hydrant produce water when water doesn’t run in the hostels 24/7?

Looking at the type and size of the fire yesterday, it is very obvious that the fire teams responding to the incident will be overwhelmed because they lack the capacity to fight it. The fire truck of the college is as old as the school itself with less than 2500liters water carrying capacity, the numbers of hose are inadequate and busted leading to pressure loss, there is no standard firefighting ladder, the pump on the fire truck cannot give the required 150PSI pressure required for safe and effective firefighting, no crowd control, no command and control structure in place at the scene of incident and most importantly the firemen lacks the required PPE needed for adequate fire response to the incident {WHO WAN DIE?}.

What type of proactive fire prevention strategy has the school’s management adopted? Do they do fire drills in the hostels and faculty buildings, do they give orientation to the new intakes in to the hostels, are there fire safety signs in the schools, do the students know about how not to start fire, do the student know what to do in case of fire incident, are there fire extinguishers in the hostels, are the fire extinguishers functioning, do the portals know how to use the fire extinguishers, are there floor captains and safety champions in the hostels of residence? These are questions looking for answers from both the management of the institution and the fire department.

It’s a pity that with time we will forget this incidents until another one happens then we will think of what to do again without doing anything. It has happened to yabatech now, where it will happen again no one knows, it can be in UNILAG, LAUTECH, LASU, OAU, IBADAN, ABU, NNSUKA, or any other higher institution of learning in the country. It can even be in your home, your place of worship, your place of relaxation, your workplace, in the bus and any other place. I implore the management of the school to implement the following recommendations so as to prevent and mitigate future occurrence.

Ø Develop and implement a fire safety policy for the school
Ø Recruit more young blood into the fire department
Ø Train your firemen
Ø Develop a regime of drill for the firemen. Revive the old practice of Thursday morning drills which must be documented and monitored by a senior management staff of the school.
Ø Invite a competent and well trained fire expert to monitor and participate in the drill for firemen
Ø Get a modern fire engine for the school
Ø Get the required PPE for the firemen
Ø Encourage other staff {teaching and non-teaching} to volunteer as fire fighters.
Ø Get PPE and necessary training ready for the volunteers
Ø Have a fire safety orientation training every semester for all intakes in to the halls of residence.
Ø Start a regime of fire protective equipment maintenance and document
Ø Start a regime of fire drills in all buildings in the schools and document. The fire drill should be conducted by the school’s fire department
Ø Install adequate safety signs in all halls of resident
Ø Provide an adequate means of water supply to the fire hydrants



Hammed Usman { IDipNebosh, GIFireE, ANISP}

HEALTH AND SAFETY EXPERT

FIRE SAFETY INSTRUCTOR

FIRST AID INSTRUCTOR

sheconcept@gmail.com

0809855887

PRINCIPLE IN THE SAFE STORAGE OF DANGEROUS AND HAZADOUS SUBSTANCES.

A dangerous substance is any substance used or present at work or at home that could, if not properly controlled, cause harm to people as a result of a fire or explosion. Home is included in this definition because these substances have been over time used and stored in Nigerian homes. They include but not limited to solvents, paints, petrol, varnishes, flammable gases {LPG}, dusts from machining and sanding operations and dusts from foodstuffs. These substances are categorized as either being explosive, oxidizing, extremely flammable, highly flammable or flammable.

Employers must carry out a risk assessment which is suitable and sustainable for the workplace, such risk assessment must include:

Ø Hazardous property of the substances

Ø Information on safety provided by the supplier, including information contained in the relevant safety data sheet.

Ø The work processes and substances used and their possible interactions

Ø Amount of substance involved/stored

Ø Arrangement for safe handling, storage and transportation

Ø Likelihood of formation of explosive atmosphere

Ø Anticipated effect of fire and or explosion

Ø Any other safety information as the employer may need in order to complete the risk assessment.

Ø Record of risk assessment shall be made available where the numbers of employees are more than five.

In a workplace, regulation demand that storage of the substances should be separated from the manufacturing, accommodation, public access, garages and equipment which has the potential for producing the much needed heat for fire hazard. But where it is not possible to situate the storage area away from the production or accommodation area, it should be carefully and safely sited within the building well away from escape route with exposing panels, so that the panel will give way and not the whole building. Store should have at least two access points with clear signs and labels.

Ventilation is very important for both gases and fumes, which may either be lighter or heavier than air. Storage for gases should ideally be wire mesh for continuous circulation of air. The floor should be of concrete or some other impervious material so that moisture will drain easily. The doors, locks and hinges all need to be strong and intrusion proof, there may be no need to have a window unless it is an escape route then it should be very secured with bar cross. Security should be on a level 1 at least.

Different types of goods {e.g. Packets, drums, cylinders} should be differently stored and stacking should follow the following principle:

· Keep the stacks as small as is practical

· Keep stacks away from wall and off the floor by suing pallets.

· Stacks should not be close to lights, alarms points, sprinklers and other firefighting equipment.

· Stalks should not block drains or scuppers.

The store should be inspected regularly and after each use. Waste and debris should not be allowed to accumulate. Good housekeeping involves:

ü Planned maintenance

ü Fire and safety equipment in good condition

ü Adequate space and proper layout

ü Unobstructed access in the workplace

ü Cleanliness and tidiness, safe disposal of scrap and waste

ü A good management attitude and effective supervision.

In the workplace, substances should be left in primary containment from the manufacturer or any other recommended container. It is important to check the integrity of the primary containers to ensure that they have not been damaged or show signs of wear and tear. Drums if stored outside, can rust and the content may become contaminated and spill. Plastic containers can age and, if exposed to extreme temperature may become brittle and crack.

Secondary containment involves the installation and use of drip trays, kerbs and bunds which are designed to contain leaks and spillage should primary containment fail. The general guidelines suggests that the secondary containment facility should be capable of retaining 25% of the total volume of the containers being stored or 110% of the largest of the container being stored, whichever is greater.

If hazardous substances are used in homes, storage should be limited. For example the storage of petrol in homes in not allowed in UK and USA but the Nigeria National Fire code 2008 allows the storage of not more than 9.8liters of petrol in homes but on the conditions that:

1. It is stored in a metal safety can

2. The safety can has a self-closing lid

3. That safety can is sealed and will not allow the content to escape should the can tip over.

Hammed Usman {IDIPNEBOSH, GIFireE, ANISP}

Health and safety expert II Fire Safety Instructor

08098558872

sheconcept@gmail.com

TANKER/TRUCK OWNERS: THE NEW TERRORIST.
Don’t be surprised that I called the taker owners in Nigeria terrorist. Going by the statistics since May this year, they actually have been terrorizing the people. Taking unsuspecting lives, making children……..orphans, wives…… widow and families…… helpless. If you will remember just this year alone there have been more than twenty tanker/truck accidents in the country taking over 120lives. The first of the series of the incidents occurred on June 2nd at Iyana Ipaja, in Lagos. This incident was said to have been caused by bad road. Then another at Onitsha slaying over 50 people who were peacefully asleep in their bed. This has been the trend in Nigeria since the time I can’t remember. I can re-call an incident on Lagos-Ibadan express way when a taker in traffic with other Nigerian road users catch fire killing more than 200 people. The content of the tanker spilled to the neighboring village to continue the havoc. Going by these trends one would have expected that the government find a lasting solution to this Monster.
On the 1st of September, a heavy duty truck fell from Ojuelegba bridge killing four people while they were waiting to be passed by the traffic. Like that is not enough, two days after another two incidents occurred again in Lagos and a state in the eastern part of the country. Is it not time the government do something? Who do we blame for this negligence? We all need to be concerned: as we are all vulnerable.
The united nation through the International Labor Organization: in her Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 requires that you must have a safety policy to govern your operations if you have more than 5 workers {excluding domestic workers}. Nigeria ratified this act by developing the factory act. The factory act requires that all employers must be responsible for the safety of all employers and the safety of those affected by their acts and omissions. Today, the factory act is displayed in most work place for decorative purposes and its content is broadly ignored. Health and safety is practiced for three reasons: legal, economic and moral. If you ignore the legal and economic reason, why ignore the moral? It is the moral that brings out the humanity in us, it is what teaches us that we should not cause harm to others. Statutorily we have a third party insurance policy for our vehicles because of moral reason.
It is the responsibility of the government to make legislations so that employers can priorities health and safety just as they care about marketing, sales, accounting, purchasing, production and so on. It will amaze you that the required laws for health and safety management in Nigeria are in existence but what is lacking in enforcement and implementation. Which governmental agency is responsible for ensuring that these tankers/trucks are inspected and certified road worthy before they leave the port or the tank farm as the case may be? Do they carry out these checks? What is the competency level of the inspection officers? How do they document records? What happens if there is a breach, do we fine, impound or correct them?
It high time the government took both punitive and non-punitive measures against companies that are not abiding by the laws. Government must begin to punish drivers, jail their managers, directors and owners of companies whose truck/ tankers is involved in act of negligence. Their company operational license should also be withdrawn or suspended. The options of fine, cooperate liability, training/ audit order and others should also be explored.
Activities of companies that deal with the truck/ tankers should also be regulated. All tankers before going into a depot are given a safety check so that hazards are spotted, evaluated and controlled before they are granted access. This same check should be given to them before they leave the depot but this time they will check for more than fire hazards. An evidence of check should be signed by the officer doing the check in duplicates and a copy carried on the truck throughout the journey.
The capacity of the road safety officers and VIO should be boosted beyond checking vehicle papers. They should be able to check that the container on the truck is safely positioned and fixed to the truck; they should be able to do an on the spot safety assessment of truck carrying PMS and other flammable and highly inflammable substances. They should ask for safety pass given to the driver from the port or depot to show that a designated/competent safety officer from the company has passed the truck before hitting the road.
All trucks must be force to carry their maintenance/ repair record on board and government should certify the maintenance company. The drivers should show record of competency and medical fitness. The inspecting officer should be equipped enough to check that the gauge on all the tires are regular, they should be able to carry out on the spot drug and alcoholic test on drivers and if they fail the test as required by existing law they should be stopped from driving and jailed.
The government must show serious commitment to stopping the incessant murder of Nigerians by tanker/ truck owners.

Usman Hammed {GIFireE, ANISP}
Health and safety expert! Fire safety instructor! First Aider
sheconcept@gmail.com
08028558872, 08098558872.

A TICKING TIME BOMB.
Consumption of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (cooking gas) in Nigeria has increased to 125, 000 tons per Annum. This is about 56 percent increase from 70,000 tons consumed last year. According to reports from Daily Trust, President of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas Association, Alhaji Awalu Ilu, said the quantity still fell short of the requirement of the growing population of the country.
Nigeria is still among the countries with very low consumption of cooking gas with respect to the huge population its commands. This shows the level of poverty in the country where cheaper alternatives such as firewood, kerosene and charcoal are used instead.
The increased consumption of cooking gas could be attributed to increasing cost of kerosene which most Nigerians use for cooking. With more investment coming into the Liquefied Petroleum Gas sector, it is expected that consumption will increase.
Each day I move around in Lagos I see entrepreneurs tap into the young and volatile Gas business in Nigeria in their own little capacity through dispensing of cooking gas for domestic use. My area of concern is the dangers this kind of business expose US to. Today over 2000kg of these gases are stored at dispensing points which in most cases are fully residential building. A fire incident at these illegal dispensing points will result into mighty explosion that will leave greater damage more than that of the BOKO HARAM BOMB. Moving shock wave will cause ventricular fibrillation to the hearts, charged flying particles will piece the human body, and loud sound can result into temporary and permanent hearing loss.
This practice is in breach of the DPR regulations, National fire code {2008}, Lagos State Fire Service Act and the Factory act. Other international breached regulations are the health and safety at work recommendation R115 and the C115, health and safety at work regulation 1999 and work place safety act.
The government has neglected the legal and moral duties she supposed to show to Nigerians by protecting their life, property and welfare of the people. The government must protect the people from harm of exploding cooking gas. The government must ensure that these businesses are set up away from high population area where there will be little impact on the population should there be any fire/explosion. The government must force the owners of the business to ensure that they practice optimum safety in the shop- electrical installation must be intrinsically safe, no use of mobile phones, generators must be positioned at least 15meters from the shops, proper storage facility, no use of candles and other naked lights in the shops. The shop owners must be licensed by appropriate authority before operation start. Licensing should include level 1 safety certification of the business owners and there must be proper supervision by competent government authorities.
Land lord should know the intended use of the property by a tenant before leasing out the property. If the intention is to use the property as a gas dispensing facility and there are other residential occupants, such rent should fall through. In health and safety, this is a crime and it is in breach of the regulation 4 of the HASAWA 1974 act. The incidence of fire in such a building could result into explosion which will definitely cause death to all occupants in the building as at the time of the explosion. Deaths and other related serious injuries will also occur in adjacent buildings to the explosion up to 1.5 miles away.
The present practice is such that no one cares about the safety of life and property but care is giving to profit maximization. We may not appreciate this piece until we witness an incident, trust me I have seen it before, this is my job….. it is always DISASTROUS. I can predict that more than 10 souls will be killed, many will be injured by shock wave and flying object, more that 4buildings will be affected, many cars will be damaged and the traumatic effect it will have on the resident of the street cannot be quantified.
Now I am calling of the federal and state governments through their relevant agencies like the Federal Fire Service {fire prevention and inspectorate services}, State Fire Services, DPR, Nigerian Police and NEMA to live up to their responsibility. They should enforce the existing laws of the land before this ticking time bomb explodes.
Usman Hammed {GIFireE, ANISP}
Fire Safety Instructor! HSE Specialist! First Aider.
08028558872 ! 08098558872
sheconcept@gmail.com

Story story......once upon a time.......

There live two people, one a Shepard the other a fisherman. They go about their businesses as usual one day a group of children decided to judge the sincerity, love n mercy the two friend posses based on their profession.

A part of the children argued that it is better to be a fisherman on the basis that u don't have to do much work other than trowing u bait in d water n then relaxing till a gullible fish in the river try to eat up the worm on the bait and get hooked and u don't have to worry about replenishing the river that nature has its way of healing itself.

The other children argued that being a Shepard makes u a more patient, caring and understanding person. That a Shepard have to look ard for good grasses for his flocks to feed on, he has to protect his flock from predators, he has to provide water, he need to understand that his flocks needs rest, he has to walk ard with his flocks in the rain, Sun and other harsh weather condition. Unlike a Fisher man who deceives the fish into swallowing the bait with a worm, he never cares about d welfare of the fishes, he will not go to d river to feed d fishes without the intention of killing them, he never protects the fishes from being preyed on. All he wants is his satisfaction.

In the end 80% of the children agreed that the shepherd will make a better person as compared to the fisherman.

Do you agree?

Northern hausa Muslims......I can see he reason why he is one of those that was sacked.

Harmattan is one of the seasons in Nigeria. The Harmattan is a dry and dusty West African trade wind. It blows south from the Sahara into the Gulf of Guinea between the end of November and the middle of March. There are so many challenges one could face during this period like cracking of lips or breaking of lips, cold, dry skin, catarrh, cough and a lot more but among all, cold is the major problem.The cold weather and the heavy amount of foggy dust in the air can limit visibility and block the sun for several days, comparable to a heavy fog shows that the harmattan is here again. Some patients suffering from asthma, pneumonia and people who are prone to respiratory diseases often suffer much because of excess cold and dust.It is advisable to cover yourself well and wear thick cloth during this period so as to keep your body warm and protect yourself from cold. The dry, cold and dusty wind associated with Harmattan also triggers sickle cell crises in affected individuals.

Aside the health issue hamarttan is also a cause of most fire ard this period as it easilly exposes our carelessness and non observance of fire safety pricnciple. For fire to start three things most bassically be present, fuel, heat n oxygen. All solid fuels has moisture in them and this is responsible for their high ignition temperature. Harmattan is xterised with moisture absorption a reason why our close gt dried faster than normal. The harmattan gt combustible materials de humidified lowering their ignition temperature thus making them easily combustible. So we must be very careful with ignition sources at home and at work.

Harmattan period is nt the best period to wear fur and other artificial hair as they easily build up static charges. Perhaps a reason why most ladies scrach their here more during harmattan.

It is better you wear more of cotton fabrics during this period as cotton will conduct the least static charge during this period. When u wash ur cotton use detergent and dont wash off all the detergent. Detergent helps to reduce the rate of static charge build up during harmattan. This is very iportant for owners of petrol stations and tank farms to ensure this aspect of fire prevention during this period. Those that are responsible for ensuring that standards are met in our petrol stations and oil and gas industries should start thinking along this line.

I hope dis helps. Enjoy the weather as we are product of our environment!

Cheers!

I av finally confirmed that ASUU postpone d their meeting till Jan 15, 2014. I see this postponement as ASUU not been serious. Its either the Wednesday's meeting was not suppose to produce the much expected strike call off or they r bunch off unserious people. Hiw can u mourn somebody for two months? Its too much. May God bless d family of the dead bt the truth in my own opinion is dt u cant put the future of hundreds of thousands of student to a halt because of one person' s death. Why not declare 3days of mourning or seven days. Two months? Its f**cking too much.

When president Yar' adua died the country never left a gap for up to 1hr and after d swearing in of the new president we began to mourn d dead president.

Let the intellectuals wear thier thinking cap if truely they r.

I av finally confirmed that ASUU postpone d their meeting till Jan 15, 2014. I see this postponement as ASUU not been serious. Its either the Wednesday's meeting was not suppose to produce the much expected strike call off or they r bunch off unserious people. Hiw can u mourn somebody for two months? Its too much. May God bless d family of the dead bt the truth in my own opinion is dt u cant put the future of hundreds of thousands of student to a halt because of one person' s death. Why not declare 3days of mourning or seven days. Two months? Its f**cking too much.

When president Yar' adua died the country never left a gap for up to 1hr and after d swearing in of the new president we began to mourn d dead president.

Let the intellectuals wear thier thinking cap if truely they r.

I know of a girl who was raped by two boys yesterday in Abeokuta. The girl is seriously in bad shape now and I want to help her get justice but I am a novice on how to go abt it. How can the girl report tthe case to d appropriate authority without any harm to her identity.

She is presently in d hospital getting treatment.

Pls dis is serious dont trivialize it.

Evalsam1: Hmmm! What's dis Hajj all abt that someone can spend N950,000 jst to attend.

U will not understand. Hajj is d fifth pillar of islam. If u r a true beliver it must be part of ur intention to go and perform the religious right as performed by prophet Abraham and shown by prophet Muhammed S.A.W. He is not a Muslim he who has d money bt didnt perform Hajj. Its an important aspect of our deen for those that can afford it. If u cant no wahala

Dont give them to me , onpe noni. If she is nt fair its ok bt she must nt be fat sha o !

I am inetrested in meeting a muslim girl for a serious relationship. I prefer she is fair n nt fat.
No jokes pls.

johnemeka: The simple answer is that there is a vein that passes through that curved area and the millitary boot is desinged with that curve.If you have straigth footh,the curve in the boot will constrict or block that vein and make it defficult for blood circulation.when one is on parrade the heart tends to pump faster to push More blood for metarbonism to take place for energy release to carry out action.
Anyone with flat foot will not survilve millitary because once he stays long standing or on parrade with the boot he will feel dizziness and will faint.
During my NYSC service I learnt about this from the Nigerian Red Cross society.this is why any time someone faints, you are adviced to remove the foot wear,belt,cap,loosen up the cloth.
Enjoy!!!

Yeah Good explanation bt the idea of removing the shoe of a fainted person in no more in practice as this can result into shock as a result of rapid change in body temperature that result when d feet is cooled down by the atmospheric air .

A building just collaped on Alli street lagos Island some few minutes ago. A kid has just been rescued. Please pray that more people are rescued alive.

Another terrorist group in the making. I just hope they can handle d situation professionally n tactically cos this is how boko haram started.

Eni building on Adeola Odeku road close to d bull plaza does the same. Each tym I drive pass the building I fear for tankers carrying liquids with flash points below 37degree centigrade.

Pele onpe

victorazy: NO! He should keep cow & camel as no be God create dog and gave dem sense of humour

Senseless

I was there