THE CAUSES OF GEOPHYSICAL ACCIDENTS*

The attention of everyone has already been drawn to the part which accident reports must play (Geophysical Prospecting, March, 1957, PP‐ 1 to 8). We intend to show here, with supporting examples, that the systematic analysis of the causes, does allow one to obtain practical conclusions.

To begin with, it is advisable to widen the notion of geophysical accident as much as possible. This being done, about 200 reports distributed over a long period and a sufficient number of parties, are dealt with. The collected reports are sufficiently numerous to draw conclusions in a general way bearing on the headings: drilling, transport, outbreaks of fire, explosives, falls, stings, shocks, miscellaneous causes.

All the quoted figures are referred to the number of accidents reported. Action must be taken to encourage european geophysicists to study accident reports and to analyse the causes. This may be done in such a way that secret information, such as whereabouts of their personnel, is not disclosed.

Efforts to promote “Security” must in the first place bear on the quest for the causes, the definitions of ‘accident’ and of ‘geophysicist’ being taken at their widest possible meaning.