Why Are Emergency Eyewash Stations So Important?

There is always a danger lurking around in work places that involve handling of chemical or hazardous substances.  As soon as these substances come in contact with the human eye, one needs to immediately rush to wash out the substance from the eye lest there is a loss of vision or damage done to the eye by the hazardous substance.  Therefore, the initial ten to fifteen seconds becomes extremely critical and any delay in the treatment will result in serious injury and perhaps loss of vision too in some cases depending on the substance.  Emergency eyewash stations are therefore considered as life saviors or rather vision saviors for they are capable of providing the decontamination on the spot.

Even though the employer takes very good control and safety precautions there may be a chance for accidental chemical exposures to occur.  So, one needs to just look beyond the regular protective equipment like face shields, goggles and using different types of personal protective equipment.  Emergency eyewash stations provide the entire backup and help in minimizing the effects that may be brought about by the exposure to hazardous chemicals.  

Where should the OSHA eyewash stations be located in the facility?  For the solution to be highly effective, it has to be located in such a place that it is easily accessible to one and all.  OSHA recommends that the person is in a position to reach the equipment within ten seconds of the occurrence of the incident.  When there is a potential risk of chemical, one can ensure that the emergency eyewash stations are installed within ten to twenty feet from the hazard.  Each of the eyewash station has to be marked with a high visible sign and it should be in such a form that workers can identify it easily even without having any language skills.  In addition to that, the locations where the OSHA eyewash stations are kept need to be adequately well lit.

The emergency eyewash stations should not be separated by any kind of partition from the potentially hazardous area.  The employer should also ensure that the station provides the users with tepid water as long flushing time with cold water may cause some other eye problem.  So, any kind of a chemical splash has to be rinsed from a minimum of 15 minutes to a maximum of 60 minutes.  There may be different types of work areas that will require the OSHA eyewash stations and they are laboratories, dipping operations, high dust areas, spraying operations, dangerous substances dispensing areas and battery charging areas.

Therefore, a correct analysis of the hazard in the work place will definitely help in selecting the right kind of an eye station and installing the same in the right place.  Based upon the number of workers that are there in the hazardous substance area will give you an idea as to how many stations you need to install.  And in cases of isolated workers and the dangers they may meet, you can have the visual alarm alert installed so that other workers can know about what has happened in the facility.  The eyewash stations are most important as they help in mitigating the danger caused to the eyes.