ORDER NO. 34/1977

PROVISIONS FOR THE PROTECTION OF WORKERS FROM THE
HAZARDS OF THE REPAIR AND DEMOLITION OF TANKS, DRUMS

AND WORK IN CONFINED SPACES

The Minister for Labour and Social Affairs;in pursuance of paragraph one of Article 92 of the Labour Law for the Private Sector, promulgated by Amiri Decree Law No. 23/1976 and Order No. 29/1976 made by the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs with respect to organisation of industrial safety organs in establishments and determining and regulating the necessary services and precautions for the protection of workers during work and from machinery, and to Order No.
12/1977 made by the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs with respect to the determination and organisation of precautionary measures vital to the protection of workers engaged in construction, civil engineering and shipbuilding;

ORDERS

Article 1

The provisions of this Order shall apply to all premises subject to the provisions of the Labour Law for the Private Sector, 1976.

Article 2

According to this Order, the following expression shall have the meaning assigned to it: 'competent' shall mean the definition stipulated in Order No. 12/1977 made by the Minister for Labour and Social Affairs with respect to the determination and organization of precautionary measures vital to the protection of workers engaged in construction, civil engineering and shipbuilding.

Article 3

No plant, tank drum or vessel which has contained any explosive or flammable substance shall be subjected -

a. to any welding, brazing or soldering operation;
b. to any cutting operation which involves the application of heat;or
c. to any cutting operation involving the application of heat for the purpose of taking apart, demolishing or removing the plant, thank,drum or vessel or any part of it, until all practicable steps have been taken by steaming, boiling out or otherwise to remove the flammable substance and any fumes arising from it or to reder them non-explosive or non-flammable; and if any plant etc.
has been subjected to any such operation, no explosive or flammable substance shall be allowed to enter the plant etc. until the metal is cooled sufficiently to prevent any risk of ignition.

Article 4

Before a contractor undertakes any demolition of large tanks or a vessel whose capacity is 450 litres or more, e.g. oil storage tanks, authority for the work undertaken shall be obtained from the Directorate of Labour at the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs.

Article 5

Where work has to be done inside any chamber, tank, vat, pipe, flue or other confined space in which either (a) dangerous fumes are likely to be present to such an extent as to involve risk to persons being overcome thereby or (b) the proportion of oxygen in the air is liable to have been
substantially reduced, the following precautions shall be taken:
1. The confined space shall be provided with a manhole, which may be rectangular, oval or circular in shape, and shall be not less than eighteen inches long and sixteen inches wide or (if circular) not less than eighteen inches in diameter, or in the case of tank wagons and other mobile plant, not less than sixteen inches long and fourteen inches wide or (if circular) not less than sixteen inches in diameter.
2. No person shall enter or remain in the confined space for any purpose unless he is wearing suitable breathing apparatus and has been authorised to enter by a responsible person, and, where
practicable, he is wearing a belt with a rope securely attached and a person keeping watch outside and capable of pulling him out is holding the free end of the rope.
3. Sub-paragraph two of this Article shall not apply in the cases where the confined space is safe for a specified period, safe for entry without breathing apparatus and the period so specified has not expired, but no person shall enter or remain the space unless he has been warned when that period will expire.
4. A confined space shall not be certified under subsection (3) of this Article unless:
a.effective steps have been taken to prevent any ingress of dangerous fumes; and
b.any sludge or other deposit liable to give off dangerous fumes has been removed and the space contains no other material liable to give off dangerous fumes; and
c.the space has been adequately ventilated and tested for dangerous fumes and has a supply of air adequate for reparation; but no account shall be taken for the purpose of paragraph (b) of
this subsection of any deposit or other material liable to give off dangerous fumes in insignificant quantities only.
5. There shall be provided and kept readily available a sufficient supply of breathing apparatus, of belts and ropes, and of suitable reviving apparatus and oxygen, and the apparatus, belts and ropes
shall be maintained and shall be thoroughly examined, at least once a month or at such other intervals as may be prescribed by a competent person; and a report on every such examination, signed by the person making the examination and containing the prescribed particulars, shall be kept available for inspection.
6. A sufficient number for persons employed shall be trained and practised in the use of the apparatus mentioned in subsection (5) of this Article and in the method of restoring respiration.

Article 6

The Minister for Labour and Social Affairs may by an Order grant exemption from compliance with any of the requirements of the foregoing provisions of this Order in any case where he is satisfied that compliance with these requirements is unnecessary or impracticable. This Order shall be published in the Official Gazette and it shall come into effect from the date of its publication.

Minister for Labour and Social Affairs,
Isa Bin Mohammed Bin Abdulla Al Khalifa
Dated: 26th December,