After two workers
died on Saturday at Paz Refineries in Ashdod due to alleged
hydrogen sulfide poisoning, the Israel Institute of Occupational Safety and
Hygiene (IIOSH) called upon both employers and employees around the country to
be more fastidious about adhering to safety protocols.
While IIOSH
representatives did not want to make specific comments about this incident,
since it was still under investigation by the Industry, Trade and Labor Ministry
on Sunday evening, they said the event spoke to an alarming trend of worksite
accidents occurring lately.
In the past week alone, there have been six
such fatal events – two ostensibly from poison inhalation at the Paz site, one
by falling from a great height, one shocked to death by electricity, one fatally
struck by an object and one other incident, according to Andrew Matayas, head of
public relations at IIOSH.
“This is by far, by far too much,” Matayas
told
The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.
“We at IIOSH would like to call upon
all the employers and the employees and to emphasize the importance of following
the safety instructions and to be very strict about behaving
accordingly.”
Employers should be constantly conducting safety courses
tailored to the needs of their workers, stressing the details of all the safety
guidelines in the particular facility or construction zone, Matayas
continued.
Meanwhile, in addition to turning to their employers if
uncertain about dangers at work or hazards involved with specific activities,
employees can approach IIOSH’s information center free of charge by phone or via
their website, to receive guidance on all such questions, he added.
As
part of its Safety and Health Administration, the Industry, Trade and Labor
Ministry routinely sends inspectors to all of the country’s factories to monitor
safety compliance and conditions, and the safety regulations in Israel “are
very, very advanced,” Matayas said.
However, such advanced rules can only
be effective if all employees and employers are following them meticulously, he
explained.
“It’s very sad to hear [about] so many deaths that are
unnecessary,” Matayas said.
“I call everyone who has a question about
specific materials or rules, or questions about safety at work or home [to
contact us] and we will be happy to assist them,” he added.
As of Sunday
evening, a spokesman for the Industry, Trade and Labor Ministry said that the
investigation into what led the two men to their tragic deaths at the Ashdod
refinery on Saturday was still ongoing.