5 Laboratory Hazards and How you can best avoid them

1. Familiarize with Material Safety Data Sheet
2. Store chemicals in an appropriate storage facility
3. Put chemicals in their allocated positions when they are not in used
4. Keep chemicals in their original containers
5. Dispose chemicals in environmental friendly manner

The best way to prevent lab accidents is to be prepared and knowledgeable about what you are
working with, be it equipment, chemicals or biological materials. Having a range of knowledge for
each type or chemical/biological class of hazard you will work with, in advance, is what I call a
“working understanding” of your environment in the lab. A working understanding for prevention of lab accidents and incidents is developed by learning how
to recognize and evaluate hazards, evaluate risks of those hazards, elimination / minimization of identified risks and by attention tasks being performed.