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Machine guarding solutions, a chemical tank cover and work boots for women in the trades were the top occupational safety and health products featured this week on ISHN.com.

Occupational fatalities in the U.S. increased last year, a lawsuit follows an assembly line death and the NTSB identifies safety issue behind devastating pipeline explosion. These were among the stories featured on ISHN.com this week.

The National Safety Council (NSC) estimates that 115 people may be killed on the roadways during the Christmas holiday driving period, and an additional 163 may be killed during the New Year’s holiday driving period. That number would likely be significantly higher if not for seat belts. This low-tech, highly effective motor vehicle safety feature is estimated to save 245 lives over the same driving periods.

Many workplaces require workers and visitors to wear personal protective clothing (PPE) while on worksite premises if there are hazards present in the area such as open flames or chemicals which can cause harm. It is important that PPE is always worn correctly whilst in a hazardous area, as this will prevent accidents from occurring and make for a safer work environment.

Office workers who spend long hours on the job are more likely to have high blood pressure, including a type that can go undetected during a routine medical appointment, according to a new study published today in the American Heart Association’s journal Hypertension. High blood pressure affects nearly half of Americans ages 18 and older and is a primary factor in more than 82,000 deaths per year.

Chances are this holiday season you will send and/or receive a package. Probably several. We all delight in the ‘miracle’ of a package arriving on our doorstep a mere few days after ordering. It’s easy to forget that there is no magic involved. Considerable effort and many workers are responsible for the arrival of your holiday gifts.

"OSHA will continue to use BLS data for enforcement targeting within its jurisdiction to help prevent tragedies," said Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of Occupational Safety and Health Loren Sweatt. "Inspections for OSHA were up, and we will work with state plans so employers and workers can find compliance assistance tools in many forms or call the agency to report unsafe working conditions. Any fatality is one too many."

On May 3, 2019, at a chemical manufacturing facility in Waukegan, Illinois, the operator of a tank in which a silicon hydride emulsion was being made suddenly yelled a warning. Alerted by the “unusual activity,” another operator and the Shift Supervisor – fellow employees of AB Specialty Silicones – ran over to the emulsions area. By the time they got there, the tank was overflowing with foam.

The percentage of high school seniors who reported vaping marijuana within a month of being surveyed jumped from 7.5 percent in 2018 to 14 percent in 2019, according to a study published today in the Journal of the American Medical Association. The data analyzed in the study indicate that this was the second largest single-year jump for teen use of any substance since the survey began in 1975 – second only to another vaping-related increase, of nicotine use, between 2017 and 2018.