Safe and sound

AT SEA

03.05.2016

Courtesy Story

USS Kearsarge (LHD 3)

AT SEA - It’s a sunny afternoon and on board the amphibious assault ship USS Kearsarge (LHD 3) a sunny day is a good day for amphibious operations.

As Sailors in colored jerseys conduct foreign object damage (FOD) walk-downs, a select few Sailors don white jerseys, float-coats and headgear, decorated with a green cross, designating them as members of the safety department.

Although the people who work in safety assist in signing paint chits and issue respirators, there is a part of their job that is much more complex.

“Our real goal is to identify hazards and problem areas across the ship,” said Lt. Gregory Sherman, Kearsarge safety officer. “Once identified, we then implement controls, or measures, to help mitigate those hazards and to help prevent mishaps.”

Sherman said that mishaps can range from either a minor or severe injury, to damaged equipment; anything that could prevent mission accomplishment is considered a mishap.

The safety department is unique in that it is comprised of Sailors of multiple rates, from various departments, allowing the department to have a broad outlook on how to identify safety hazards.

“There’s no set requirement to be selected to be in safety. We like to pull from the biggest departments on board,” said Sherman.

Sherman said the department typically requests representatives from engineering, deck and air department to ensure a good mix of skills.

This mixture is essential because safety observers are an essential part of every shipboard task, whether it is well deck evolutions, vehicle movements, flight quarters or a replenishment-at-sea.

“We prefer to have somebody on station to watch for anything that may have resulted in a mishap in the past,” said Sherman.

Sherman said one of the most common causes of injuries on the ship results from people running to evolutions.

“If you’re running to general quarters or to a quick draw, you may run right into a knife-edge or a light fixture,” said Sherman. “We see people get hurt significantly when they don’t follow proper shipboard procedures.”

Safety department has a threshold of limits that set a criteria which determines whether an incident is minor or severe, according to Sherman. If the mishap meets severe conditions, a report is submitted through the Web Enabled Safety System (WESS), the Naval Safety Center’s online reporting and data retrieval system.

Sherman said that WESS includes a full investigation.

“We try to look at what preconditions were in place and what lapses might have occurred, either in decision making, equipment or structural failure,” said Sherman. “Then we try to determine the root cause and make recommendations to correct or prevent that mishap from happening again.”

Maintaining a safe working environment is the job of every Sailor on board Kearsarge, but those Sailors designated as safety petty officers see things the average Sailor might not see.

Aviation Boatswain’s Mate (Handling) 1st Class Anthony Good said being a safety petty officer gives him a different point of view.

“My routine changes on a daily basis, so the change makes it easier to see things from a different perspective,” said Good.

The FOD walk-down is complete and amphibious operations now have the green light to begin. The boatswain’s mate dons a yellow float coat and cranial and, with a glowing wand in each hand, awaits the signal to begin directing vehicles.
Nearby, a safety observer watches with rapt attention. The signal is given, the wands begin to move in sync, the vehicles move out and the safety observer nods with approval. Everything is safe and sound.

• Date Taken: 03.05.2016
• Date Posted: 03.10.2016 06:47
• Story ID: 191856
• Location: AT SEA