NIOSH publishes toolbox talks on fire safety, LOTO

The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) recently published two toolbox talk documents, one addressing workplace fire hazards and the other focusing on lockout/tagout (LOTO).

The fire safety toolbox talk describes a fatal incident involving a worker who was unable to detect smoke due to a lack of functioning smoke alarms. The document highlights the importance of fire protection programs, hazard identification, fire extinguishers, and proper ventilation to remove flammable and combustible fumes and vapors.

The LOTO toolbox talk explains how to safely shut off or isolate power to a machine. Steps include:

• Applying a hasp to lock the energy source in the off position,
• Tagging the equipment,
• Releasing or blocking any stored energy, and
• Ensuring the machine is off before servicing it.

Both documents are available on NIOSH’s website.