ABSTRACT
Risk assessment of accidents serves a dual purpose. It estimates the probability that an accident will occur and also assesses the severity of the consequences of an accident. Consequences may include damage to the surrounding environment, nancial loss, or injury to life. This chapter is concerned primarily with introducing the reader to the methods used to identify these hazards and the causes and consequences of accidents (Theodore and Dupont 2012). Issues dealing with health risks assessments (HRAs) were explored in Chapter 13. Risk assessment of accidents (or hazard risk assessment [HZRA]) provides an effective way to help ensure either that a mishap does not occur or reduces the likelihood of an accident. The result of this type of risk assessment allows concerned parties to take precautions to prevent an accident before it happens.
