The approach of summer is a reminder to us all of the need to recognize, and act to prevent, the harmful effects of excessive heat. The White House has designated May 23–27, 2016, as Extreme Heat Week, during which Federal agencies will work with community planners and public health officials to enhance community preparedness for extreme heat events. Workers are particularly vulnerable to the health impacts of heat exposure.
Posted with permission from FairWarning.org: Last year was a bad one for motorcyclists, with a new estimate showing that 5,010 bikers were killed in crashes nationwide, the worst death toll in seven years. The apparent 10 percent increase in motorcycle fatalities, based on an analysis by the Governors Highway Safety Association, coincided with a projected rise of about 8 percent in traffic deaths overall in 2015.
Two manufacturing companies were recently cited by OSHA in unrelated incidents for failing to prevent hazards that resulted in two workers losing fingers.
A West Virginia contractor found itself on the receiving end of an OSHA investigation after an agency inspector observed an employee working on scaffolding with no fall protection and in close proximity to an electrical power line – a combination that could have proved deadly.
A firefighter in Kentucky is electrocuted after contacting overhead power line, Kentucky. A factory manager dies after bypassing lockout-tagout. A landscaper in Massachusetts working from a raised portable work platform is electrocuted when a pole saw contacts an overhead power line.
When someone suffers an electrical shock, they actually are – at that moment – part of an electrical circuit. The severity of the injuries they sustain depends on three primary factors: the amount of current flowing through the body (measured in amperes); the path of the current through the body and the length of time the body is in the circuit.
A Passaic, New Jersey warehouse operator was cited earlier this month for two dozen safety violations, including failure to have a written hazard assessment and a hazard communication program (including material safety data sheets), a lack of training for employees required to handle hazardous chemicals, fall hazards, inadequate exit signage, lack of machine guarding, electrical hazards, and a failure to provide eyewash facilities.
Q: Is there a limit to the number of precautionary statements that appear on the label?
A: No. OSHA requires all of the appropriate precautionary statements to appear on the label to warn users of the hazards of the chemical in question.
The White House has designated this week as Extreme Heat Week. For federal agencies, it’s a time to double down on community preparedness for extreme heat events, with the help of community planners and public health officials.
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