BELLA VISTA — Ever wondered just how dangerous some jobs are?
I was thinking about that the other day while driving north on U.S. 71 on the way to the office.
First, though, here is a list of the top 10 most dangerous jobs, taken from www.thedailybeast.com.
While several other sites had different jobs in the last three or four spots, most were in agreement with the first six.
◊fisherman
◊logger
◊farmer or rancher
◊structural construction worker
◊sanitation worker
◊airline pilot
◊roofer
◊coal miner
◊merchant mariner
◊mill worker
Police officer is 12 and firefighter is 13.
While I would agree that those are very dangerous jobs, I was a bit surprised to not see highway worker in there any place.
Let me tell you why.
Most times that I have come upon a construction area on the highway, it was well marked, signs were placed well in advance of the actual work and, if need be, lanes were closed off using those big, orange cones.
What I experienced last week on U.S. 71, just south of Exit 98 - Town Center - was far from what I was accustomed to seeing.
There was a truck parked in the median, facing south. It was an Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department vehicle.
There were four men with the truck, two on either side.
Each of the men had a shovel, and they were scooping some sort of patching material - it looked like asphalt - from the rear of the truck, then scurrying across one or both lanes of the road to apply that material to a hole or crack.
They were constantly looking up to see what traffic was approaching and then back down to make sure their load was placed correctly.
When threatened by oncoming traffic, they either jumped to the shoulder or ran back across one or both lanes of the road to the truck.
There were no cones placed anywhere.
There were no signs erected warning drivers of the pending danger.
Nothing was done to protect the safety of these men. Their very lives depended on their abilityto judge the speed of the oncoming traffic versus how long it was going to take them to reach relative safety on either side of the highway.
I could not believe what I was seeing.
It’s no wonder workers in these types of situations die way too often.
It was just a few weeks ago that a Fayetteville city worker died after being struck while on the job. Two other workers were hurt. In that accident, the area was marked off with traffic cones, and signs were in place warning drivers.
If such a terrible thing can happen when all precautions are taken, just imagine how bad it could be when drivers don’t know what’s up ahead.
We drivers know we are supposed to slow down in work zones, and I like to think that most of us do. But what are we supposed to do when we don’t know a work zone is up ahead?
What if this job was being done on one of the curves in the highway? Those men might not be visible until the last minute - and that might be too late.
Were these workers I saw required to place signs and cones in their work area? I don’t know.
It begs the question: Just what is the accepted definition of a highway work zone?
How do we know when we are in one and clear of it?
It’s against the law now to use a cell phone while driving in a work zone, but if you don’t know it is a work zone, are you actually breaking the law? That might be a tough one to argue against in court.
If these men were violating state policy as it pertains to establishing a safety zone, I hope they are re-educated on the policy before one of them is injured, or worse. In fact, I would hope the Highway Department folks would look at the practices of their workers and make sure all are following prescribed procedures.
This is one of those times we can be proactive and maybe save some lives.
Grant is managing editor of The Weekly Vista.
Opinion, Pages 6 on 10/19/2011