Situational Awareness in the News
- Anna Hayford
- Aug 4
- 2 min read
Situational awareness is defined as the ability to perceive, comprehend, and anticipate events or circumstances in one’s surroundings. It involves recognizing potential hazards, understanding the current situation, and making informed decisions based on that understanding.
While some people might have an innate sense of awareness to their surroundings, for most of us, this is a skill that is learned and improved through education and experience.
To practice situational awareness, some moves to make include:
Perceiving:
Avoiding distractions
Focusing on the present moment
Observing your surroundings
Paying attention to details
Comprehending
Using all of your senses
Analyzing and interpreting information
Identifying patterns and trends
Anticipating
Considering different perspectives
Planning ahead
Developing contingency plans
Now, let's look at why situational awareness is literally a life-or-death situation with some recent news articles on OSHA Focus-Four topics:
Struck-by Death: A worker operating an excavator is unaware another worker is inside of the trench they are digging: Another victim of America’s industrial slaughterhouse: 23-year-old construction worker killed in Michigan
Electrocution Death: A worker comes in contact with energized electrical lines while in an elevated bucket: Michigan sees 15th worker death of 2025 in Ludington
Caught-Between Death: A worker is crushed by a truck while connecting a trailer: Man who died while reconnecting gravel hauler remembered for humor, trivia skill
To end this blast with some good news, did you know that deaths are declining in areas that OSHA is placing serious focus on?
We've seen a serious improvement in both falls from heights and trench-related deaths in the past few years. Department of Labor encouraged by decline in worker death investigations | Occupational Safety and Health Administration
Join our optional morning safety session on August 27th at 8am to learn more about situational awareness and what we can learn from tragic accidents like these.
