Only His Hard Hat Remained: A Scary Story about Poor Shift Communication
It was a chilly October morning and the night shift was getting ready to go home. Jason, the supervisor, was ready to murder his operators for not cleaning up the sulfuric acid that was leaking from the cooling towers. He had every intention to place a sticky note on the computer monitor for the day shift to see, warning them of the hazard. He was suddenly interrupted by a call from his new girlfriend, Annie Wilkes, urging him to rush home for his birthday surprise at Crystal Lake. He scribbled a nearly unreadable message on the note that said, “Sulfuric acid on the floor”and slapped it on the monitor. As he slammed the door behind him, the sticky note blew off and floated on to the floor.
Meanwhile, Chucky, Day shift supervisor, had a bad night arguing with his fiance Tiffany at their Cabin in the Woods. He was wanting to wear his overalls to their wedding in Jersey. She was not going to allow it. He is already late for his shift when he arrives at the plant. He clocks in and as he walks to the desk, Jason’s note sticks to the bottom of his boot.
Just then, Bob Pennywise, an operator and also the clown of the day shift, comes in the door with red balloons for Jason’s birthday. Chucky was not in laughing mood and quickly directed Bob to do his rounds at the cooling towers. Within minutes there is a blood curdling scream! Chucky and the other operators rushed outside to see what had happened. Acid was everywhere but Bob was gone. Only his hard hat remained.
The team was horrified. Chucky went back to the office in despair and leaned back in his chair. He looked down at his feet and saw the note stuck to his boot. He did his best to make out the message. “Supper is in the fridge door?” he mumbled. Confused, he sat there for a moment and pondered on how this nightmare could have been avoided.
Although this is a fictional story, poor shift communication can be deadly and having a good system in place is not a joking matter. LogBook was created to help ensure a safer workplace and reduce risk through real time communication. Reduce operational surprises and increase awareness today.
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