Whenever you are approaching a work area – no matter if it is an office, a warehouse, a manufacturing plant, a hazardous chemical plant, your basement or your garage – the first thing on your mind should be: Do a quick safety inspection.
An inspection should make you aware of any possible hazards.
In almost every workplace, the main hazard is from trips and falls, so your first inspection should be a visual scan of the walking surface. Examine your route and pay special attention to areas you will be walking while carrying equipment.
The reason for this is simple – whenever you carry a piece of equipment like a ladder, tool box or anything else, the extra weight, no matter how minor, alters your center of balance. This causes your body to react in a different way than it would if you were empty-handed. So if your foot contacts something along the way, you are much more likely to fall.
Watch out for depressions, dips or soft spots that can cause you to lose your balance.
Watch out for floor coverings. They may be loose or weak enough to cause a fall.
Watch out for liquids.
In short – Watch Out!