Public dramatic events

Availability bias An event is judged likely or frequent if it is easy to imagine or recall under relevant circumstances. However, it may result in a systematic overestimation of probabilities for events recently experienced, emotionally salient, or otherwise memorable or imaginable. For example, in a study by Lichtenstein et al. (1978) it was found that (1) the probabilities of dramatic, well publicized events such as botulism, tornadoes, motor-vehicle accidents, homicides, and cancer were overestimated, and (2) correspondingly unremarkable or less dramatic events such as asthma, diabetes, and emphysema were underestimated. Additionally, it was confirmed in the studies of shunters and construction workers by Zimolong (1979, 1985) that (3) hazards frequently experienced by the job incumbent... 

Vaccination against infectious illnesses provides unseen protection against contagious diseases—afflictions causing permanent disability or even death. Vaccines have been responsible for dramatic decreases in morbidity and mortality secondary to infectious disease, and in the case of smallpox, has globally eradicated a once life-threatening illness.However, while true adverse consequences of vaccination have never exceeded the level of adverse consequences of infection in the absence of vaccination, the public perception of harm secondary to vaccine administration has threatened to overshadow the victory of disease prevention.With the inception and continued evolution of immunization, the number of individuals protected against diseases has steadily increased. Unfortunately, the number of vaccine-related adverse events has also increased proportionally to vac-... 

ETFE foil is a flexible material which can take high short term loading. This makes it a good product for use where there is a risk of explosions While ETFE can be easily damaged if there is intent, the system can be fitted with a pressure monioring system such that, in the event of a dramatic loss of pressure an alarm will sound. However, it is recommended to place ETFE systems out of public reach. Glazed systems can also be easily damaged, if there is intent... 

The most dramatic long-term consequence of the event was the public relations impact of the on-going leak taking place a mile below the sea s surface. The daily television pictures dramatized the high-tech nature of the offshore exploration business. But they also showed that industry did not have the equipment in place to handle such an incident at short notice. Indeed, the equipment needed to bring the spill under control had to be fabricated from scratch. 

It is so easy to tune out the familiar hazards of the workplace. Safety professionals respond by constantly reminding employees of risks with a steady stream of memos, newsletters, s ety meetings, and signs. Still, these efforts cannot compete with the impact of unusual, catastrophic, and memorable events broadcast by the media and dramatized on television and in the movies. Publicity of memorable injuries, like those suffered by John Wayne Bobbitt and Nancy Kerrigan in 1994, influences misperception of actual risk. 

For the health aspect, the assessment is a bit trickier than safety since health assessment itself can be categorized mainly into public health, occupational health, and environmental health (Hassim, 2010). The three categories also do overlap each other. For example, public health and occupational health are mostly concerned with health impacts on the community and the workers respectively, as a result of process operations (emissions from the process itself which resulted in adverse health impacts), whereas environmental health refers to health impacts to the community as a result of environmental exposure. The health impact assessment in process industries has received much less interest from researchers compared to process safety as it has more complicated underlying principles health typically deals with long-term exposures, whereas the impact of safety-related events can be immediately seen upon the occurrence of the cases. Besides, the impact of health-based incidents is less dramatic compared to safety, and this insidious nature of health effect is the reason why it rarely reaches the news and is not well publicized unlike the industrial accident cases (Hassim, 2010). 

A series of eharter bus accidents culminating in a dramatic May 1999 New Orleans erash put the obscure OMC in the public spotlight. Congress responded with the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Amendments of 1999, whieh ereated FMCSA, assigned it all of OMC s employees and responsibilities, and provided some additional regulatory authorities, ineluding the power to require operators to install black box event recorders to monitor vehicle speeds and hours of operation. ... 

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