IMAS 09.31 – PRINCIPLE 4. ONE-PERSON RISK Manual approaches should be conducted as a one-person risk.
This is to ensure that if an accident occurs, the minimum number of staff are exposed.
There may be occasions when being accompanied by an assistant can be justified. For example, to help carry and set up a large piece of hook and line (H&L) equipment that cannot be done by one person alone. As soon as this is achieved the second person should return to the CP before any further actions are conducted. Reasons such as having a second operator closely monitoring or coaching a new operator, with both operators exposed to the explosive danger, cannot be justified. There should be sufficient confidence in an IEDD operator’s abilities, through assessment in safe representative conditions, to enable tasks to be coached and monitored from the CP.
ׁ HINT. Appropriate on-site coaching and mentoring of newly qualified IEDD operators is strongly encouraged. It is an extremely good way to build experience, staff confidence and to conduct quality assurance (QA). If the mentor needs to be exposed, then the IEDD operator is not ready for live operations.
Time spent inside the explosive danger area should be minimised and a robust plan should be developed and briefed before leaving the CP.
There can be a temptation in MA, especially at sites that have been subject to clearance operations for some time, for planning to be conducted close to IEDs and for staff to become complacent.
Fundamentally, even when dealing with belts of hundreds of similar IEDs, thorough planning and exposing the fewest people for the shortest amount of time possible are all key and proven factors to reduce the danger to everyone involved.
ׁ WARNING. ‘Least amount of time feasible’ does not mean cutting corners that could result in a safety error. Instead it should encourage a mindset of efficiency, and effective IEDD planning and task conduct.
IEDD in mine action – overview
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