United States Department of Defense

DEFENSE SECRETARY WILLIAM S. COHEN ISSUES ACCIDENT PREVENTION PROCLAMATION

June is national safety month. In recognition of this observance Secretary William S. Cohen issued an accident prevention proclamation to compliment members of the DoD on their safety record and to express his expectations for safety and accident prevention within the Department in the future.

Cohen said in the proclamation, "I have stated that even one accident is too many, and I continue to advocate continuous improvement until we reach a goal of zero accidents, occupational illnesses, and fires. This is an ambitious goal, but to endorse any other goal legitimizes the acceptance of harm. The goal is achievable. Small defense organizations frequently have long periods without accidents. Large defense organizations routinely go accident free for days, weeks, and even months. Working together, I believe we can and will move toward this goal."

The complete accident prevention proclamation is available on website http://www.acq.osd.mil/ens/sh/.