Sharing Safety Knowledge by ASA

MANADOPOST.ID- In our daily lives, we often use "the science of hope" and "the science of fate. When we go on a trip, we say, "May we have a safe trip," or "May our village be safe," which is our hope at all times. But if there is already an incident or accident, we usually comfort ourselves by saying that it is fate.

These two "sciences" that we often inherit from our predecessors are not bad, but they do not answer the big question of how to prevent incidents or accidents.

In safety science, people are the primary cause of accidents. Data shows that the majority of accidents are caused by human error. Therefore, efforts must be made to control actions in order to be safe. "Having good and safe equipment is a must, but the most important thing is to build a safety culture. This is the main factor in preventing workplace accidents," said Yusransyah, Head of Mining Engineering at PT Arafura Surya Alam (ASA).

Armed with the safety knowledge applied in the company, Yusransayah, together with 70 ASA employees and dozens of communities, including youth communities, shared the experience of preventing and overcoming fires that occurred some time ago in Kotabunan on February 17, 2024.

Many people just found out that in addition to a light fire extinguisher (APAR), household items such as blankets or burlap sacks that are moistened can be used to extinguish fires. Mrs. Pince, who lives near the beach, ventured to practice putting out the fire. At first she seemed hesitant because the fire seemed to be getting bigger. Then, guided by Juan from ASA's Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) team, Mrs. Pince confidently approached the source of the fire with a wet burlap sack and, poof! The fire died after the wet burlap was placed over it.

Then, one by one, other residents, including the village chief, tried their hand, and the residents applauded loudly as the "volunteers" successfully extinguished the fire and received a small gift from the company.

"We really appreciate this ASA activity. It not only educates the community on early disaster prevention and management, but also brings us closer to the community," said Kotabunan Sub-district Chief Idrus Paputungan.

Although the event ended in the afternoon, the experience was memorable for Mrs. Pince and the other residents. Yusransayah was also pleased that ASA's achievement of 2 million man-hours without a lost-time injury could benefit the community