By Jamie J. King

Due to a rash of serious laser accidents from 2001 to 2005, including six eye injuries, the Department of Energy (DOE) released a Special Operations Report (SOR) in February of 2005. A root cause analysis revealed that there were four primary causes for the accidents. They were: inadequate training, inadequate Laser Safety Officer (LSO) conduct, need for better internal oversight, and a failure to wear Personal Protective Equipment (PPE).

Insufficient training and an inadequate level of understanding of the hazards and controls were cited in each of the accidents analyzed. This was noted at the worker level, with those who oversee the operations, and supervisors of laser users. As many of the accidents involved students, the inadequacy or lack of training and a safety culture at the university level was mentioned. Continue reading →