Risk Analysis and Risk reduction
Thu, 24 July 2008, 10:10 amDon Allen42 posts in thread
Risk Analysis and Risk reduction
Thu, 24 July 2008, 10:10 amHow many risks are you aware of when working in a theatre or even being in a theatre onstage or backstage.
Electrocution
Cuts
Broken Bones
Eye damage
Hearing damage
Community theatres have a responsability under the WA Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 and WA OSH Regulations 1996 to provide a safe working environment. There may also be additional responsabilities imposed by local councils.
As an individual you have the same responsabilities.
These following links will provide usefull and productive information:
Why productive ? if you maintain your venue and its equipment to a safe standard, you greatly reduce the setup times for shows and remove a lot of the glitches that may affect a performance.
I did not use the work "accident" as I do not beleieve there is such a thing as an accident, anything that goes wrong is as a direct result of someone being incompetent or using unsafe work practices.!
WA Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984 http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/pco/prod/FileStore.nsf/Documents/MRDocument:7379P/$FILE/OccupSftyAndHealthAct1984_05-g0-00.pdf?OpenElement
WA OSH Regulations 1996 http://www.slp.wa.gov.au/pco/prod/FileStore.nsf/Documents/MRDocument:7552P/$FILE/OccupSftyAndHealthRegs1996_06-b0-00.pdf?OpenElement
Risk Assessment (UK) http://www.hse.gov.uk/risk/fivesteps.htm
The backsateg Information Guide - Bath University http://people.bath.ac.uk/su2bc/infoguides/index.shtml
ABTT Theatre Essentials http://www.abtt.org.uk/PDFs/Theatre_Essentials.pdf
Guidelines on the Application of the Health (Public Buildings) Regulations 1992 http://www.population.health.wa.gov.au/environmental/resources/Public%20Buildings%20Guidelines%20Final.pdf
Safety Guidelines For The Entertainment Industry (Australian) http://www.entservices.com.au/pdfs/theatrereqs/AustnEntertainmentIndustrySafetyGuidelines.pdf
In the absence of any formal training for amateur theatre technicians, then self education is the way to go.
I suggest you download any of these documents that allow you to, as it is an excellent start to a library and sometimes web resources tend to dissappear.
I always notify actors who walk under ladders when someone is working above them, that it would be a pity to waste all of their rehearsal time, only to miss out on performing because they have been injured during a tech rehearsal, so keep clear and be aware of their surroundings.
Theatre is one of the most
Fri, 25 July 2008, 10:48 amTheatre is one of the most potentially dangerous games there is.
I think it is more luck than good management that there are not more casualties & disasters than there is. I doubt it is down to the patron saint of the arts, looking after us?
I remember being abused for by the Production Manager of a visiting theatre company, at a regional Venue. For having the audacity to ask if he had an Electrical Licence, when he was wiring up a number prac lights on stage. He replied that in Perth we don't need a Licence, so mind your own business. I attempted to advise him I was a Licenced Electrician & he was wiring the lights wrong. He attempted to have me fired, but didn't succeeded . Then the leading actor [A well known performer & personality] received a shock from one of the light fittings on the stage. I placed danger tags on all the fitting he had wired up & he started to remove them. until I advised the management it was in breach of the act to do so. I repaired & made safe all the fittings, then advised the Electrical Inspection Branch of the incident, & filled out the appropriate forms. They eventually caught up to him with the same show in Perth & was fined $2000 in Court, some months later. He was lucky he was not charged with something more serious, such as Edangement or Manslaughter. The venue manager at the time, in my view was a twit. After going off his tree because the situation was raised a week later by the actor concerned, in a popular Perth radio interview. I got it in the neck of course, as being all my fault! So I raised other safety issues, instead of this wally spending the money to fix them, he brought in the local OH&S Inspector to check out the venue. Then screamed when the Inspector placed Health Warning Notices on the front doors & would not remove them, until all of the 65 breaches found, were rectified within 7 days.
To my knowledge only 23 were ever fixed by the City Council, who owned the venue, I think most of the other safety problems are still there. As it became very political in the end, it was all swept under the carpet. But I'm sure it will bight them in the 'R Send' eventually, if they have not sorted the safety situation out!
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