Fire Extinguishers are a huge part of our safety on our day to day operations. Almost everyone who has worked underground knows that Fire Extinguishers 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐞𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚 𝐦𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐡.
So there are a couple facts that people don't know or haven't been taught the right way to inspect or how not to get violations from MSHA.:
1. A major one is the monthly punch tag on mobile equipment. I always rip them off when they are put on my equipment.
2. Do a pre-op on your equipment inspection so there is no need for a monthly tag on your equipment. This only gives MSHA a chance to site you for a punch tag!!!
Only stationary stations i.e. Fuel Bay's, M.P.C's, Refuge Chambers or any place that can cause a fire. Recently i've discovered that people don't know about the inspection certification tag on them.
3. It's simple, think of it like your car, It is good for only 12 months once it is certified by the company that inspects them. Sometimes they punch the 6 month mark, so you need to pay attention to that part of the sticker. Also if the inspector doesn't sign it then it's out of compliance.
4. If the sticker is not legible then it needs to be pulled out of service and replaced immediately.
5. Everyone should already know the basic inspections:
Check for any damages, the charge is within the green and the safety pin is secured.
6. Physically pickup the extinguisher and tip it up and down since the powder can pack to the bottom especially on mobile equipment due to all of the vibration.
𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐝𝐨𝐮𝐛𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐢𝐭 𝐨𝐮𝐭. 𝐊𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐢𝐧 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐲 𝐝𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭!!!