DisasterCast Safety Podcast

In this episode we discuss the Mt Erebus disaster. What could cause pilots to  fly a perfectly working plane intoRead more »

This episode is about underwater tunnel floods, or, more precisely, the lack of such accidents. Are tunnels really that safe?Read more »

After both technical and production difficulties, DisasterCast is returning on a regular schedule. This episode discusses the Longford Gas PlantRead more »

This episode discusses interlocks in general, and also the application of interlocks to train safety. Britain’s worst rail disaster, Quintinshill,Read more »

This episode dives into the background of the Columbia Space Shuttle Disaster. It also discusses the aftermath of a USRead more »

Ron returns to ask the question “Which causes more accidents: unsafe conditions, or unsafe behaviors?” Once he’s finished unpacking theRead more »

This episode describes the USS Iowa explosion, the subsequent investigation, and the dangers of hindsight analysis. The post Episode 51Read more »

This is the third episode of Ron Gantt’s “Two Cents Worth of Safety”. Ron discusses the use of safety slogans,Read more »

This episode takes a new look at the really big safety question – “Why do accidents happen?” We discuss howRead more »

This is the second “Two Cents Worth of Safety” by Ron Gantt. Regular DisasterCast has been slightly delayed, and willRead more »

This is the first episode of “Two Cents Worth of Safety”, which will interleave with the regular DisasterCast episodes. InRead more »

This is an episode about large piles falling over. We start with the physics of sandcastles, and move quickly toRead more »

The NTSB has released a report examining common organisational factors in five accidents on Metro North Railroad in and aroundRead more »

After a brief hiatus, DisasterCast returns with Episode 47. In this episode we ask what it means for something toRead more »

This episode returns to the language of safety. As an illustration the 2013 incident involving a lithium-ion battery fire onRead more »

Episode 45 of DisasterCast tries something a little different. This episode has three different stories of exactly the same accidentRead more »

This episode is about single points of failure, common cause failures, and the Hinsdale Central Office Fire. The post EpisodeRead more »

In this episode I discuss some of the people who’ve helped shape my own thinking on safety research. The secondRead more »

This episode covers an Iranian military transported downed by lightning, the Milford Haven Texaco Refinery explosion, and the dangers ofRead more »

One of the weird things about safety is that we spend so much effort on safety analysis during design, despiteRead more »

Sean Ellis visits DisasterCast this episode to provide a detailed discussion of TWA 800 and the associated conspiracy theories aboutRead more »

DisasterCast has covered some pretty weird topics. We’ve dealt with pilot defenestration, spontaneous human combustion, and exploding death stars. IRead more »

This episode was recorded in the Safety Science Innovation Lab, and comes filled with thoughts about how we tell storiesRead more »

When I claim that the chance of my front-lawn rocket exploding is “ten to the minus six”, just what doesRead more »

This episode features the BP Texas City Refinery explosion of 2005. Unlike most accidents featured on the show, it isRead more »

What is independence? Why does it matter for safety? Why can’t we have perfect independence, and why wouldn’t we wantRead more »

This episode is about a clash of principles I call the “Question of Final Authority”. The question is: In aRead more »

This episode discusses measurement of safety and the Imperial Sugar disaster. Measurement is the foundation of both research and businessRead more »

In the 1970s and 1980s there was a series of accidents which triggered a really intensive examination of organisational safety.Read more »

This episode is about attempts to make things safer that actually make things worse. The episode focusses on the workRead more »

We’re up to 30 episodes of DisasterCast, and we still haven’t talked about the Titanic. Why start now? This episodeRead more »

Safety engineering and management is full of compromises. We compromise between short term and long term risk. We compromise betweenRead more »

This episode is all about level crossing safety. Level crossings are a simple situation, repeated throughout the world, that illustrateRead more »

In this episode we talk about Stuxnet, and the relationship between safety and security more generally. Stuxnet demonstrated that aRead more »

If you’ve ever wondered why safety is considered a systems discipline rather than simply a specialisation of chemical, civil, mechanicalRead more »

The Feynman Gap is the gulf between engineering understanding of risk, and management understanding of risk. The concept is namedRead more »

DisasterCast is on hiatus until January 28. In the meantime, here are three segments from previous episodes. This episode coversRead more »

This episode discusses a few aspects of preflight briefings on passenger aircraft. In particular, we look into accidents and evidenceRead more »

This episode addresses seven questions about bicycles and safety: How dangerous is cycling compared to walking or riding in aRead more »

What do electric cars, steel capped boots, and balloons bursting in crowded lecture theatres have in common? Not much, exceptRead more »

There is a fine line between confidence and stupidity. In the 1970s the London Ambulance Service tried to implement aRead more »

Have you ever noticed that very few people get hurt during the design of a system. From precarious assemble-at-home microlightRead more »

This episode is about military fratricide accidents, also known as friendly fire, blue-on-blue, and the reason why your allies areRead more »

In 1999, at a place called Glenbrook, just outside of Sydney, Australia, two trains collided killing seven people. In 2003,Read more »

Honesty and humility about uncertainty are an important part of safety. At one end of the spectrum is false certaintyRead more »

Sociologist John Downer talks about his recent paper, “Disowning Fukushima: Managing the Credibility of Nuclear Reliability Assessment in the WakeRead more »

This episode of DisasterCast covers the Three Mile Island nuclear accident, and “Normal Accidents”, one possible explanation for why disastersRead more »

This episode discusses the Therac-25 accidents, and includes an interview with software safety researcher Richard Hawkins. Despite the widespread useRead more »

Piper Alpha Overview On the 25th Anniversary of the destruction of the Piper Alpha oil platform, everyone is discussing theRead more »

This episode examines British Midlands Flight BD92 (Kegworth). In the Kegworth accident, the Boeing 737 experienced an engine failure, butRead more »