Drivers Talk Dock Safety

Did you know that over half of all injuries related to trucking occur at the dock and most of those are preventable?  There are 3 “tricks” to helping you prevent dock injuries: awareness, caution, and care, and all 3 are very critical to prevention.

Awareness is a very easy thing to do, and takes just a few moments of your time.  Knowing where you are going, i.e. tight turning spaces, is very important as it allows you to avoid possible injuries to persons or vehicles.  Be aware of your vehicles handling so that if a distracted driver or obstacle in the road causes a hazard you can “get out of the way” and possibly have enough clearance to avoid.  Be aware of road conditions where you are delivering as rain & ice can cause slippery conditions that make it harder to stop where you need to.

Caution is the hardest one to follow at times as it is so easy to get in a hurry to get your load delivered. You start to rush, and just like in our own personal vehicles, the rushing causes accidents.  Use caution in areas that have heavy pedestrian traffic, as not every dock is in an area that is safe from public traffic.  When backing up into the dock area, or pulling into a rack, make sure you have set your brake before stepping out of the cab.  Use caution when getting out of the cab and make sure you use the 3 points of contact while climbing down.  While out on the dock make sure you remain cautious, and watch out for fork lifts, potholes or other equipment that might be in the area.

Care is something most don’t think about when it comes to dock safety, as they think of care as more of a need for family.  One of the definitions of care is the serious attention or consideration applied to doing something correctly to avoid damage or risk.  You need to take care when operating a forklift or pallet jack, so that you don’t hit the truck or even anyone else that might be in the area with you while loading or unloading a truck. 

 There are always unpredictable hazards that can occur where ever you go, but when you keep in mind the 3 “tricks” you can help prevent most of the accidents or injuries that occur.  Always remember to stay safe & that each dock has its own unique set of challenges.