5. SAFETY
Once all of the swings were installed, the scaffolding was
disassembled and the decking planks were installed to
the wooden nailers (see Figure 12 below.
Local safety standards are extremely unsophisticated in
remote, isolated communities like Arenales. Instilling a
culture of safety with unskilled volunteer labor in this
environment can at times seem a nearly unsurmountable
task. The Arenales Suspension Bridge team tackled the
challenge with resolve. With an average of 6 community
volunteer workers on site each day, the project closed
with 1008 days of local labor, 880 days of skilled labor,
and not a single safety incident beyond minor cuts and
bruises. The B2P, Kiewit, and KPFF teams modeled safe
practice for local community members, supplying them
with necessary PPE such as hard hats, gloves and glasses,
leading safety discussions each morning, and training
community members on the appropriate use of fall
protection when working at heights.
Figure 12: Volunteers from Kiewit and KPFF, along with Bridges to
Prosperity staff and community members, install walkway decking
boards
Tie cables to connect the walkway to the wind guy cables
were cut to length and attached to the wind guy cables at
predetermined locations. As the walkway was being
completed, a second work team followed on the
completed section of the deck, attaching the tie cables to
the appropriate crossbeams. Once the decking was
finished, the wind guy cables were tensioned. Finally,
handrail cables and fencing were installed to complete
the bridge structure (see Figure 13).
Figure 14: Volunteers from Kiewit and KPFF lead an all-hands
meeting at the start of the day to review tasks and assess safety risks
The size of the Arenales Bridge presented unique safety
challenges. The anchor reinforcement cages weighed
nearly a ton, and had to be moved using a customized
cable and pulley system to avoid manually dropping them
into place. Excavations for foundations were dug nearly 2
meters deep, so they were benched for safety, a practice
not common locally.
Figure 13: Walkway and guy wire installation is complete, and
fencing is installed
The dynamics of the site layered on another unique set of
challenges. The new bridge was being constructed over
where the existing crossing still stood, which acted as a
main thoroughfare for the Arenales community to get to
essential services. To maintain the community’s access
throughout construction, the team rerouted that
thoroughfare multiple times. All community labor was
directed to a single intake point, where they could ensure
they were appropriately trained and outfitted before
entering the site. Similarly, the team worked with local
volunteers to complete a Hazard Analysis for every
operation identifying hazards and how to mitigate them.
3/2017