PERCEPTION OF HAZARD .1. HAZARD ANALYSIS AND THE CONTRIBUTION OF VISUAL-SEARCH TO HAZARD PERCEPTION

Rockfall accidents are an important determinant of safety performance in deep level mining. Previous research which is reviewed suggests that a lack of skill in perceiving warnings of imminent danger may be an important factor contributing to this kind of accident. The perceptual task of mine workers is described briefly and a survey of the visual characteristics of dangerous rock is reported upon. The visual search performance of mine workers in a stope simulator, designed on the basis of the survey results, was studied. The findings show not only that novice mine workers, when compared with experienced men, lack the ability to search adequately in a simulation of dangerous rock, but also that their search skills can be improved significantly by training. © 1979 Copyright Taylor and Francis Group, LLC.