Working in the hot sun

June 14, 2011

Photo credit: Ronnie Puckett on Flickr

It’s going to be hotter-than-usual across the country this summer, says Environment Canada – and I can’t wait! As a writer, I can work from pretty much anywhere, and if I’m hot, it’s no problem to get enough water, shade, and rest.

But it’s not so easy for people in other jobs – especially folks who work outside. Working in the heat may at first feel uncomfortable, but it can lead to serious health complications and even death in extreme cases.

OSHA reports that 30 workers die each year in the US from heat-related illness, and that thousands more get very sick. To combat this, OSHA has launched a Campaign to Prevent Heat Illness in Outdoor Workers, including a video and other resources (also available in Spanish).

“HEAT ILLNESS CAN BE DEADLY,” reads the OSHA website. “Every year, thousands of workers become sick from exposure to heat, and some even die. These illnesses and deaths are preventable.”

Recognizing the signs

Video image from OSHA's Campaign to Prevent Heat Stress in Outdoor Workers

Workers should pay attention to the following signs of heat exhaustion: excessive sweating, muscle cramps, shallow breathing, increased heart rate, dizziness, weakness, and fatigue.

Here in BC, employers are required to “provide adequate training and education to all workers at risk for heat stress, their immediate co-workers, and their supervisor,” reads Preventing Heat Stress At Work, from WorkSafeBC, available in English, Spanish, Chinese, and Punjabi.

More info

Recently I’ve spoken with two managers who said they’d been talking with staff about working in the heat. One works with bus drivers; the other works with school grounds keepers. I’ll be sharing their stories here soon, and in the meantime, here are some resources you can share or use at work.

It’s Your Health – Extreme Heat Events from Health Canada

Heat Stress from CUPE National Health and Safety Branch

Heat Stress Fact Sheet from Princeton University, New Jersey

OSH Answers: Hot Environments – Health Effects from the Canadian Centre for Occupational Health and Safety

Heat Stress, a NIOSH Safety and Health Topic from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Heat Stress in the Workplace: What You Need to Know as an Employer from Britain’s Health and Safety Executive

Working in bear country

November 02, 2010

B.C. archaeologist Shannon Cameron

BC archaeologist Shannon Cameron takes precautions every time she goes to work in the woods. But one day, she and her coworker met a bear whose curiosity outweighed his instinct to avoid humans.

“He was within 15 feet and he was standing up on his hind legs and huffing. There’s specific noises and facial expressions they make when they’re going to charge, and my crew member and I were doing everything we could to look as big as possible,” she told me.

“We were waving our arms and clapping and hollering and setting off bear bangers and bear spray and finally the bear decided he didn’t want anything to do with it and he turned around and walked away. That’s as close as I ever got.”

As archaeologists, Shannon and her colleagues look for evidence of past human activity on pieces of land used by foresters, geologists, and other industries. The first thing they do – with respect to wildlife – is make a lot of noise to announce their arrival. They bang shovels and do “bush calls” to let animals know humans have entered their territory. Once they get to work, they keep talking to one another if they are spread out, to keep their presence known.

Bear tracks. Photo supplied by Shannon Cameron

“You’re pretty focused on what you’re doing on the site, trying to get it done,” Shannon said. “There were things you had to do in that environment, like not bringing certain foods like chicken wings or ribs in your lunch and making sure all your food is well-sealed.”

Shannon said they also carry bear bangers (i.e. small explosives that scare bears away), bear spray, and a rifle for shooting into the air. She said workers in the area – foresters, geologists, biologists, and archaeologists – inform each other about animal sightings.

“Knowing there’s a mama bear with cubs in the area is the most concerning thing because you know they will be very protective and they’ll have bigger boundaries than they normally do,” she said.

Shannon said awareness is the best prevention.

Photo credit: emples on Flickr

“It’s being aware of your surroundings and trying to be respectful of it. If you do that, you really minimize your chance of having those close encounters,” Shannon said, describing how you can keep the environment safe for other humans who arrive after you.

“You don’t leave all your food wrappers or feminine hygiene products laying around. If you minimize your impact and let everything know where you are in the bush, you’re probably not going to have that many incidents.”

Even one close-up incident would be more than enough for me, but luckily there’s more information on minimizing the risks of bears in the woods. Check out Beware of bears and be prepared and Training of workers with respect to bears.

WildPlay preps for safety from the ground up

August 26, 2010

Jonathan Huittika stands on the bungee jump platform above the Nanaimo River.

While camping on Vancouver Island recently, I got a chance to meet with the staff at Nanaimo’s WildPlay Elements Park (formerly the Bungee Zone) to talk with them about their new safety program.

I met with the company’s skills training manager Jonathan Huittika, site manager Jennifer Doyle, and WorkSafeBC safety officer Dave Gaskill. Together we sat in the sun on a patio and they told me about the new safety program they’ve been working on together.

“We pretty much had to set it up from the ground up with meetings, documentation, an operational health and safety manual, and committees of workers and managers who meet on-site,” Jonathan said.

Jonathan Huittika, Dave Gaskill, and Jennifer Doyle at WildPlay, Nanaimo.

“Before Dave came, we had practices but we didn’t have proper documentation. Obviously we have to be extremely safety-minded here – for guests and staff.”

Jen, the site manager, said her team has been working on the safety manual and looking at ergonomics. They also look at personal safety for workers who may be confronted by difficult guests.

“We cover it in our training – how to speak with a guest who is under the influence of alcohol or is being unsafe in any way. We do a lot of role playing in different scenarios,” she said.

Facilitating freaky fun

WildPlay guests bungee jump into the river, zip-line through the air, swing across cliffs, and navigate obstacle courses high in the trees. During the peak summer season, up to 40 workers keep things going smoothly. All of them take a five-day training course and are coached and monitored continually during their employment at the park.

WildPlay workers collect bungee jumpers from the river when they finish bouncing.

“Obviously falling is a big hazard we deal with all the time, but we’ve never had someone fall off something,” Jonathan said. “More likely injuries are the ones we don’t notice at first – like overuse when someone doesn’t stretch properly or mental stress from dealing with a large amount of people coming through the park.”

I asked Jonathan if he had any advice for other employers starting safety programs from the ground up.

“The most important thing is to be proactive with your WorkSafe agent. You do not have to have everything perfect from the start but it is important to keep progressing,” he said. “Even when your program is established, you need to always have risk management in the back of your mind in your day-to-day work practices and to address these concerns proactively on a consistent basis.”

What hazards do you face in your job?

August 12, 2010

I asked on Facebook: “What precautions do you take to stay safe at work? What ‘dangers’ do you face at your job?”

As I expected, some interesting answers came from my network of contacts who work in many different industries.

My neighbour Chris, an archaeologist, said his safety precautions include: “tailgate meeting everyday to discuss things like ’don’t get hit by large mechanical equipment, don’t get eaten by wild animals, don’t get lost, try not to fall down’….and that’s not to mention the many dangers in the office!” Read more