Part 4
Hazardous environments and remote locations
Working in extreme or isolated settings such as exposed coasts, uplands, forests, wind farms, quarries, remote utilities, or confined spaces, amplifies risk. Distance, poor communications, severe weather, unstable terrain, and toxic atmospheres mean delays in rescue can turn survivable incidents into fatalities, especially for lone workers.
Sector data underlines the point: 124 workers died in Great Britain in 2024/25; construction and agriculture/forestry/fishing accounted for the largest shares, and agriculture continues to have by far the highest fatal-injury rate (8 per 100,000), which is around 20 times the all-industry average.
Example cases:
Blizzard exposure
A 74-year-old security guard was snowed-in at Afton Wind Farm; generator failures and blocked access left him without heat and he died of hypothermia. Two companies were later fined.
Forestry incidents
Recent HSE notices include a worker crushed by wind-blown trees in the Scottish Borders and another crushed unloading timber in East Sussex. These cases illustrate remote terrain and heavy plant hazards.
Lightning in the hills
A youth-work volunteer was killed by lightning during a storm while staffing a remote checkpoint.
Mitigation strategies:
Complete a task and site-specific risk assessment before authorising lone/remote work: Consider the weather, terrain, access/egress, altitude, wildlife, chemical, and atmospheric risks. Don’t allow certain high-risk tasks (e.g., permit-required confined spaces) to be done alone.
Plan for weather and environmental extremes: Set go/no-go triggers; provide shelter, heating/cooling, shaded rest, water, acclimatisation, and safe stop procedures.
Strengthen communications and monitoring: Mandate scheduled check-ins; issue radios plus backup (satphones/PLBs) where coverage is poor; use lone-worker devices with GPS, fall/man-down and SOS to cut discovery time.
Control confined spaces: Complete atmospheric testing, ensure ventilation, continuous gas monitoring, trained attendants, rescue plans, and permit systems. There should be no entry without these in place.
Supervision and access control: Verify route/ground conditions for vehicles and plant (edge protection, banksman, exclusion zones) and adapt methods to terrain.
Sector-specific training and PPE: Forestry felling/wind-blow techniques, remote first aid, hypothermia/heat-illness recognition, lightning/wildlife awareness. Equip workers with appropriate PPE and emergency kits for the environment.
