So Google doesn't provide/require PPE for electrical cabinets? Arc-flash gear has been around for decades, its terrible to hear about preventable injuries, especially at a company that can afford safety.

I hope the workers can fully recover, and google is heavily fined (not that OSHA fines are remotely heavy)

I think that its a really common subset of the human condition for otherwise smart people to think "doesn't apply to me" and "won't happen to me" and "never happened to me before" are more than just confirmation bias to "oh. it just happened"

A lot of the reddit "look at this funny electrical explosion ha ha ha" posts get qualified EE saying "this was not avoidable and they needed the PPE" or "this is way worse than it needed to be" or "they were stunningly lucky to escape" or "yea, you don't know the end outcome: they died of the burns"

Part of the problem is that some of the PPE is really unwieldy and I think people don't "like" using it because of how restricting it is to be fully suited up. Bad move.

I remember talking to an EE doing maintenance work on a Digital Equipment DEC-10 power supply room in 1980s. He removed wedding rings, watches, had plastic glasses, to even just go into the room. he was super, super paranoid about being within distance of the cabs, and always had the operations staff around when he went in. Totally not cavalier. I totally didn't "get it" at first, but after I saw what the room looked like (bare bus bars) I decided I never wanted to do power electrics, ever.

Some days just working behind normal 220v inputs to the rack of our machineroom in an SME (5 racks, raised floor, Liebert units and a 20KVA UPS) I wonder how many people know I'm inside this confined space, room with thick doors, noisy: I doubt they'd hear me fall, or cry out.

It's far too easy to allow "it hasn't happened yet" to lull you into a false sense of security.

I watched a Cray-1 400hz re-generator fuse explode in a machine room once, when the Cray installer technician said "oh, its jammed, let me just push this with a screwdri..."

He had a pretty good reset on OHS, we all were a bit stunned how close it came to an inquest.

I agree that its certainly common, but that is why it was imperative for Google to have had policies in place to require PPE. Someone entering an arc-flash risk cabinet without PPE should have been disciplined or fired by a supervisor.

And thanks for the insight and your personal experiences, interesting to read!

A side note, I'd encourage you to consider introducing some form of buddy system or check in if you're working alone. Beyond electrical hazards, Ive lost a coworker to a heart attack in an unattended area. Stay safe.