The Types of Occupational Accidents to Watch Out For in Winter

January 11, 2011

The most frequent occupational accidents in winter are road traffic accidents, slips and trips, and cerebro- and cardiovascular diseases, according to a report released on January 11.

Occupational Safety and Health Research Institute of Korea Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHRI-KOSHA; Director General: Seong-Kyu Kang) released the result of a recent study “Weather and Occupational Accidents.” According to the report, the key seasonal factors that lead to occupational accident in winter are heavy snow and cold waves. On the other hand, there were high occurrences of traffic accidents, and slips and trips, while the incidence of cerebro- and cardiovascular diseases rose during the cold season as well.

The report is the result of analysis conducted by OSHRI researchers during the 3-year period from 2007 to 2009. The researchers compared the occurrences of occupational accidents in winter in three categories: winter time with no irregular weather conditions (normal period), heavy snow period, and restoration period after the heavy snowfall. Based on the analysis, 178 service industry workers fell victims to occupational accidents during heavy snow period, which is a 17.1% increase from that of winter time with no irregular weather conditions at 152.

In the case of the manufacturing industry, more accidents happened during the restoration period, compared to heavy snowfall or normal periods. While 180 casualties occurred among manufacturing workers during normal winter period, restoration period after the heavy snowfall lead to an 16.7% increase in the number of accident victims at 210.

<No. of accident victims by industries in heavy snowfall, restoration, and normal periods in winter>

(Unit: persons)

The accident type negatively affected by the heavy snowfall the most was road traffic accidents, showing a 48.7% increase in casualties compared to normal period. Slips and trips increased 43.4% during the heavy snowfall period. On the other hand, strenuous movements and slips and trips increased 77.8% and 40.4%, respectively, during the restoration period.

<No. of victims by accident types in heavy snowfall, restoration, and normal periods in winter>

(Unit: persons)

Based on the analysis of 161,904 occupational accidents involving slips and trips in the past 10 years, an average of 16,485 workers got hurt or killed annually due to slips and trips and this translates into 1,374 victims of such accident types in each month. When comparing each month of the year, December and January where the months of higher-than-average occurrences of slips and trips, leading to 1506 and 1489 victims, respectively.

<The monthly average No. of slips and trips casualties in the past decade>

(Unit: persons)

On the other hand, based on the analysis of 11,580 workers who developed cerebro- and cardiovascular disease in the past decade, an average of 1,193 workers developed the disease annually, which is equal to 99 new cases of the disease among workers in each month. The disease was most common in December and January at 121 and 106 cases, respectively, when the temperature differences between indoors and outdoors are the highest.

<The monthly average No. of cerebro- and cardiovascular cases in the past decade>

(Unit: persons)

“Crush injuries rise in spring time, when worker are likely to suffer from spring fever. In summer, skin burns become more frequent in the service industry due to higher exposure of bare skin. Also, rapid and irregular patterns of strong wind and heavy rain are observed in spring and fall seasons,” said a researcher from OSHRI, calling for special caution in each season.