Heat Illness

Summer time is coming and workers on both sides of the Cascades need to be aware of heat illness.  By now all employers should know about Washington’s Outdoor Heat Exposure rule found in WAC 296-62-095.

Working outdoors in hot weather can result in serious illness or even death.  Workers exposed to extreme heat may experience symptoms of heat-related illnesses (HRI), such as heat cramps, heat rash, heat exhaustion, fainting, heat stroke, and other symptoms.

According to DOSH heat-related illness is also linked to injuries from falls, equipment operation accidents, and other on-the-job incidents. Such incidents can happen when someone with heat stress becomes fatigued, dizzy, confused, or disoriented.

Since heat can lead to other issues and potential incidents, it is important that all of us working out-of-doors take care to avoid heat illness issues. The most important thing to do is to hydrate the night before and stay hydrated.  Drink plenty of proper fluids the night before and continue to drink fluids (i.e., water or sport drinks) throughout the day.  Remember that we not only need water, but electrolytes, which can be gained from drinking sport drinks in addition to water.

In addition to taking care of ourselves, we have to look out for our co-workers whom may suffer the effects of heat illness.  The following are from the OSHA fact sheet on heat illness.

Heat Stroke is the most serious heat-related health problem. Heat stroke occurs when the body's temperature regulating system fails and body temperature rises to critical levels (greater than 104°F).This is a medical emergency that may result in death! The signs of heat stroke are confusion, loss of consciousness and seizures. Workers experiencing heat stroke have a very high body temperature and may stop sweating. If a worker shows signs of possible heat stroke, get medical help immediately, and call 911. Until medical help arrives, move the worker to a shady, cool area and remove as much clothing as possible. Wet the worker with cool water and circulate the air to speed cooling. Place cold wet cloths, wet towels or ice all over the body or soak the worker’s clothing with cold water. 

Heat Exhaustion is the next most serious heat-related health problem. The signs and symptoms of heat exhaustion are headache, nausea, dizziness, weakness, irritability, confusion, thirst, heavy sweating and a body temperature greater than 100.4°F. Workers with heat exhaustion should be removed from the hot area and given liquids to drink. Remove unnecessary clothing including shoes and socks. Cool the worker with cold compresses to the head, neck, and face or have the worker wash his or her head, face and neck with cold water. Encourage frequent sips of cool water. Workers with signs or symptoms of heat exhaustion should be taken to a clinic or emergency room for medical evaluation and treatment. Make sure that someone stays with the worker until help arrives. If symptoms worsen, call 911 and get help immediately. 

Heat Cramps are muscle pains usually caused by physical labor in a hot work environment. Heat cramps are caused by the loss of body salts and fluid during sweating. Workers with heat cramps should replace fluid loss by drinking water and/or carbohydrate-electrolyte replacement liquids (e.g., sports drinks) every 15 to 20 minutes.

Contributed by Eric Tofte, Director of Training, Evergreen Safety Council

Safety & Health Solutions - January Issue

Contributed by Star Conrad, Director of Operations, Evergreen Safety Council 
Evergreen Safety Council produces a monthly newsletter covering a variety of safety topics. Each month we will provide a link here to the online PDF.

Inside this Issue:

Lead Article – PPE Hazard Assessment
Railroad Flaggers
LOTO (Lockout / Tagout)
Rookies = Safe Zone

You can also sign up to receive an electronic copy via email or hard copy via the mail. This link will also take you to a full archive with over four years of past issues.
So pour yourself a cup of coffee, sit back and read all about what's going on in the world of safety & health.

Reckless Driving in a Work Zone Should Equal Jail Time

Contributed by: Eric C. Tofte, Director of Training, Evergreen Safety Council

This might surprise some of you coming from a moderate libertarian (go figure), but I want to start a movement for a new State law. This law would be to protect work zone workers and would be patterned from the State of Illinois Public Act 095-0587 and basically says:

Reckless homicide of a construction worker = 3-14 years in prison. Reckless homicide of two or more construction workers = 6 to 28 years in prison.

In other words, mess up driving through a work zone and go to jail. I like this, even though I am not a fan of new laws. I’ve been a target out there, and some drivers need to be slapped hard when they mess up in a work zone.

What do you think?

Check out this link to see a summary of all the states with laws that protect work zones. 

Using a Flagger? Then its not Short Duration

Recently I have been receiving calls regarding short duration work zones and flagging operations. The crux of the calls deal with the Short Duration “exemption” regarding amount of traffic control devices, signs, etc when using a flagger for a short duration.  

The answer to this is simple in Washington State. IF YOU USE A FLAGGER FOR EVEN 1 SECOND – YOU MUST HAVE A FULL TRAFFIC CONTROL SET UP.  So you better at least of 3 signs for each approach (4 if speed is 45 mph or greater).  

Once more - If you are using flaggers, you cannot use the short duration exemption in Washington State, DOSH outweighs the MUTCD.  If you want more info check out WRD 27.20.

Thanks,

Eric C. Tofte

Director of Training

Office - 206-382-4090

Cell - 206-459-4843

Safer Roadways Paved by the Recovery Act

In the first two years of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, construction crews across Washington preserved 820 lane miles of rural and urban highways and upgraded 879 miles of roadway to reduce the risk of serious collisions.

These are just two of the investments outlined in a Washington State Department of Transportation report on the state's delivery of Recovery Act-funded projects. The report – WSDOT and the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act – documents how WSDOT worked with its partners in local government and private construction companies to deliver transportation improvements across the state.

State and local governments have completed 185 projects and spent more than $400 million of the $490 million in Recovery Act highway funds distributed to Washington. In addition, the state has received $781 million in federal high-speed rail funds and $179 million in transit funds as part of the Recovery Act.

The analysis is part of WSDOT's ongoing effort to assess state and federal investments in transportation and comes at a transition point for Washington's Recovery Act project delivery. Most of the highway, transit, and ferries projects are now complete, while construction is about to begin on the agency's Recovery Act-funded high-speed rail program.

Traffic Control Personnel

Contributed by Sandy Paquette, Roadway Safety Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council
As per the Washington State Standard Specifications for Road, Bridge, and Municipal Construction (41-10) Section 1-07.8 Page 1-50

“The contractor shall require all personnel under their control (including service providers, Subcontractors, and lower tier subcontractors) that are on foot in the work zone and are exposed to vehicle traffic or construction equipment to wear the high-visibility apparel described in this section.”

The Contractor shall ensure that a competent person as identified in the MUTCD selects the appropriate high-visibility apparel suitable for the jobsite conditions. High visibility garments shall be in a condition compliant with the ANSI 107-2004 and shall be used in accordance with the manufacturer recommendations.

1-07.8(1)
All personnel performing the work described in section 1-10 (including traffic control supervisors, flaggers, spotters and others performing traffic control labor of any kind) shall comply with the following:

1. During daylight hours with clear visibility, workers shall wear a high-visibility ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 Class 2 or 3 vest or jacket, and a hardhat meeting the high-visibility headwear requirements of WAC 296-155-0305; and


2. During hours of darkness (1/2 hour before sunset to ½ hour after sunrise) or other low visibility conditions (snow, fog, etc.), workers shall wear a high-visibility ANSI/ISEA 107-2004 Class 2 or 3 ve3st or jacket, high-visibility lower garment meeting ANSI/ISEA Class E, and a hardhat meeting the high-visibility headwear requirements of WAC 296-155-305. (12 square inches of retroreflective 360 around the hardhat)

Buffer Space
Guidance: Neither work activity nor storage of equipment, vehicles, or materials should occur within a buffer space.
Option: A longitudinal Buffer space may be placed in advance of a work space.
Best practice: using the longitudinal and lateral buffers are an important safety feature for the workers and the road users to regain control or stop before entering the work space. If the Buffers are on the approved traffic control plan then I would say those then would not be optional since they are indicated on the approved plan. You can read more in the MUTCD Part 6 Page 6C-5 (pdf)

The WAC 296-155-305 rule 9 (a) Signaling and Flagging Part E
Does require that a flagger station is far enough in advance of the work space so that the road user can stop or divert before entering the workspace the WAC uses the previous Buffer space chart from the 2000 edition of the MUTCD (shorter distance).

General Duty Clause - HiViz

Contributed by Sandy Paquette, Roadway Programs Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council
Did you know the Stimulus legislation included $27 million dollars for OSHA to step-up inspections of stimulus-financed projects? There were 100 new OSHA enforcement positions filled. Did you know that OSHA is beginning enforcement of the High Visibility Clothing rules using its “General Duty Clause?”

Question:
Construction employees working on highway/road construction work zones often risk being struck by traffic. Do the OSHA standards require high-visibility apparel for these construction workers?

Answer:
Road and construction traffic poses an obvious and well-recognized hazard to highway/road construction work zones employees. OSHA standards require such employees to wear high visibility garments in two specific circumstances: when they work as flaggers and when they are exposed to public vehicular traffic in the vicinity of excavations. However, other construction workers in highway/road c construction work zones are also exposed to the danger of being struck by the vehicles operating near them. For such workers, section 5(a)(1) of the OSH Act, 29 U.S.C. 654(a)(1), also know as the General Duty Clause, requires similar protection. Section 5(a)(1) requires employers to provide their employees: ….employment and place of employment which are free from recognized hazards that are causing or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to his his/her employees…..

The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) rationale underlying the rule well illustrates that the industry recognizes that construction workers in highway/road construction work zones need protection against the hazard posed by moving traffic. The FHWA’s recent mandatory standard for workers on federal-aid highways shows that struck-by hazards in highway/road construction work zones are well recognized by the construction industry. Furthermore, the standard indicates that a feasible means of addressing that hazard is the wearing of high-visibility apparel.

Accordingly, high-visibility apparel is required under the General Duty Clause to protect employees exposed to the danger of being struck by public and construction traffic while working in highway/road construction work zones. Typically, workers in a highway/road work zone are exposed that hazard most of the time.

The fines can start at $7000. per ticket, so if you have several workers on foot in the work zone without high-visibility apparel you can multiply the fine by that number of employees that are not wearing it.

WHAT IS GOING ON?

Contributed by Sandy Paquette, Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council

Every morning and evening during my commute I fear for my life!

Each day we travel to our jobs, some people always travel to the same location, some to varied locations in a week. Some of our jobs are considered high risk (dangerous), some are lower risk. For over 20 years my job was to direct traffic through work zones. You would think all of the crazy drivers I have witnessed would prepare me for my commute, not a chance. I am more fearful during my commute then when standing on the road directing traffic. At least I can see what is coming at me when I am directing traffic. When commuting you have to worry about what may appear out of no-where, or cut me off, or force me to speed to change lanes to get out-of-the-way.

Just this morning: 24 out of the 30 vehicles (both company and private) that I counted were going 65mph to 70mph. I wonder if the employers of these “professional” drivers realize that this type of driving behavior is occurring. These speeders are cutting in front of vehicles, switching lanes, tailgating, merging over the solid white lines and passing on the right just to get a few more feet down the road (me-first mentality),and then having to slam on their brakes. Why?

I can only guess that these types of drivers have never been involved in a serious injury crash or perhaps have never lost someone to a fatal crash.

The fact of the matter is, no matter how high or low risk the job is, a lot of us still have to commute to or for them. Motor vehicle crashes continue to be the number one cause of work related fatalities year after year.

Here are a few statistics:

• The most common day of the week for crashes, Wednesday and Thursday.
• The most common day of the week for fatal crashes is Friday and Saturday evenings.
• The most common time of the day for crashes is during the work week afternoon rush hour 2 – 7 pm.
• The most common weather conditions are clear and sunny days.

Visit the Evergreen Safety Council’s website for additional information on driver safety classes and events, as well as other worker place safety training options, and consider having your teen drivers attend Ford’s Driving Skills for Life which is free to all drivers. Fords’ event will be August, but you must register soon.

Don’t let you or your family or workers become a crash statistic 2010.

BFOO?

Contributed by Norm Nyhuis, Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council

Having recently returned from a trip to western New York State, I had opportunity to observe driving behavior in an area of our country, that I had not experienced before. This trip resulted in a major BFOO, for me.

What’s a “BFOO”, you ask? A Blinding Flash Of the Obvious.

People drive differently and driving laws vary in different states. The lesson for me was I still don’t know it all, even though I’ve driven for more than four decades.

For example: RCW 46.61.440 establishes the speed limit in schools zones, here in Washington State to be a maximum of 20 mph in posted school zones. Most of us remember this, and abide by the law. Imagine my surprise when I discovered that the speed limit in school zones in NY is 15 mph.

Another example of how different State’s laws may vary: Now that summer has arrived, the highway work season is fully underway. In my daily commute it seems that the “Road Construction” warning signs are everywhere. The State of Washington is very serious about protecting the workers on these road projects. Most of us have seen publicity exhorting drivers to “Give ‘em a brake” – give the workers in the construction zone extra attention and be ready to stop due to intrusions into your lane of travel by the equipment or workers. You probably have seen the signs informing drivers that “Traffic Fines are DOUBLE in work zones”.

The State of NY takes safety in roadway work zones seriously, too. I was a bit surprised, and very pleased to see signs posted, reminding drivers in New York, that if they received two speeding infractions in work zones, their driver’s license will be suspended!

If your or your company participates in roadway work, or work on the side of the road, you need to know and understand the laws regarding setting up roadway work zones and safely getting traffic through the work area. ESC offers the accredited Traffic Control Supervisor, as well as Traffic Control Flagger and Flagger Instructor classes to insure your workers are safe. Classes like these are essential in keeping your workers safe.

Safety Fest in Post Falls, ID

For those of you in Northern Idaho or Eastern Washington today starts Safety Fest - a 4-day safety conference offering a variety of free training sessions, vendor booths and more. ESC Director of Training and Consultation, Eric Tofte is hosting Evergreen's booth at this conference as well as teaching a Idaho Flagger Safety class.

These conferences are a great opportunity for any business required to follow OSHA and MSHA standards as well as anyone who desires to improve the safety performance of their business. Two more are scheduled in other parts of Idaho this spring:

Twin Falls, ID on March 16-19, 2010 http://www.safetyfest-southernidaho.org
Pocatello, ID on April 20-23, 2010 http://www.safetyfest-pocatello.org

Distracted Driving and Road Constructions

By Norm Nyhuis, Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council

Road construction is a year-around proposition here in the temperate climate of the Pacific Northwest. As such we need to be aware of the road construction projects underway on the roads we frequently travel. Yes, there are various traffic controls out there to help us avoid trouble, and often there is a flagger to regulate the flow of traffic through the construction zone.

But, how often have we found ourselves reacting in a negative way to the delay caused by the construction? Worse still, when we become distracted by the pressures of the day, and perhaps have attempted to use our cell phones to salvage some productive time during the delay – further distracting us from the primary job of safely driving our vehicle? I am not sure that’s what this driver was doing, but the story goes that several lane markers and the frantic attempts to get the attention of the driver by the flagger on duty were ignored with the results being at least costly to do-over and at best very embarrassing. How’d you like to fill out the insurance claim on this event?

If your company employs flaggers for traffic control, your flaggers must have on their person, current, un-expired documentation that they have been trained. Flagger information and class schedules, as well as information on becoming a flagger instructor is available on the Evergreen Safety Council website. Get trained, don’t let something like this happen at your construction project.

Picture Source: Navy Safety Center

High-Visibility Safety Apparel

By Sandy Paquette, Trainer, Evergreen Safety Council

The American National Standard for High-Visibility Safety Apparel and Headwear (ANSI/ISEA 107-2004) is a standard established by the American National Standards Institute, Inc.

Before the first publication of this standard in 1999, there was no regulation or specific guideline for the design and performance of materials for high visibility safety apparel in the U.S. Since 1999, private industries as well as various federal, state, and local authorities have recognized the ANSI/ISEA 107-1999 standard.

Historically, the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices MUTCD (by the U.S. Department of Transportation - Federal Highway Administration) focused on visibility from the driver’s perspective: the use of traffic cones, drums, and signs to provide motorists with visual cues and clear channels of travel. Until the release of the 2003 edition where the ANSI 107-1999 was first introduced as a standard, the MUTCD provided only general guidelines for workers visibility in work zones.

The guidelines introduced in the 107-1999 standard have since become more explicit in the new 107-2004 standard. The American National Standard Institute, Inc. has broken down these specific guidelines into classes, and parameters that need to be addressed. These parameters include design, requirements for background and combined-performance for retro-reflective materials, photometric and physical performance requirements for retro-reflective materials and care labeling.

There are three distinct performance levels:
Class 1 – Apparel for the use in activities that permit the wearer’s full and undivided attention to approaching traffic. Ample separation of workers from traffic and speeds do not exceed 25 MPH.

Class 2 – Apparel for the use in activities where greater visibility is necessary during inclement weather or work in environments higher risks. Workers who perform tasks that divert their attention form approaching traffic or those with proximity to passing vehicles require a minimum of class 2. Class 2 is Washington State’s minimum for hours of daylight for flaggers.

Class 3 – Apparel for the highest level of visibility for workers facing serious hazards and/or high task loads that require attention away from their work. Garments cover more of the body, such as arms and legs to differentiate the worker from inanimate objects such as cones and other traffic control devices.

The combination of the Class2 garment and Class E pants equals a Class3 ensemble.

New regulations for high visibility apparel went into affect on November 24th of 2008
The Federal regulation CFR 634 states that “all workers” (including towing companies, emergency first responders, media and law enforcement) within the right-of-way of a Federal-aid-highway who are exposed either to traffic or construction equipment within the work area SHALL wear high visibility safety apparel meeting Class 2 or Class 3. Since there are 975,000 miles of Federal-aid-highways it is extremely difficult to determine what is and isn’t “Federal-aid” so, many employers are opting to assume that all roads are covered under the regulation to avoid inadvertent noncompliance.

Road Construction HiViz & Sleepy/Distracted Truckers

OSHA: Road construction workers must wear hi-vis in all work zones
All highway and road construction workers are required to wear high-visibility garments, according to a new letter of interpretation from OSHA.

A 2004 letter of interpretation stating that workers in highway and work zones are required to wear hi-vis apparel was limited by a 2006 Occupational Safety and Health Review Commission ruling that stated the garments need to be worn only where the Federal Highway Administration's Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices mandates. The current MUTCD requires vests only on federally funded roadways.

OSHA withdrew its previous answer in the original letter of interpretation and in the most recent letter provided "a more comprehensive answer" in requiring hi-vis apparel on all highway and road construction workers, regardless of whether the MUTCD requires them.

NTSB requests FMCSA track sleep apnea
In an effort to prevent commercial motor vehicle crashes among operators who have obstructive sleep apnea, the National Transportation Safety Board on Oct. 20 issued two safety recommendations to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration.

According to the recommendation letter (.pdf file), NTSB investigated a number of incidents across all modes of passenger transportation involving operators who have OSA. The board said these incidents highlight "the critical importance of screening for and effectively treating OSA among transportation operators." NTSB recommended FMCSA:

Implement a program to identify CMV drivers who are at high risk for OSA and require those drivers to provide evidence of having been properly evaluated and, if treatment is needed, effectively treated before being granted unrestricted medical certification.

Develop and disseminate guidance for CMV drivers, employers and physicians regarding identification and treatment of individuals at high risk for OSA, emphasizing that drivers who have effectively treated OSA are routinely approved for continued medical certification.

FMCSA releases report on driver distraction
Findings (.pdf file) from a Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration study show driver distraction was a potential contributing factor in about 82 percent of commercial motor vehicle crashes between 2003 and 2005.

Researchers at the Blacksburg, VA-based Virginia Tech Transportation Institute's Center for Truck and Bus Safety combined and analyzed data from two large-scale CMV naturalistic truck driving studies. The data represented 203 CMV drivers, seven trucking fleets and 16 fleet locations.

Findings from the study show CMV drivers were engaged in non-driving-related tasks in 71 percent of crashes, 46 percent of near crashes and 60 percent of all safety-critical events. Analysis of the data showed 4,452 safety-critical events, 21 crashes, 197 near crashes, 3,019 crash-relevant conflicts and 1,215 unintentional lane deviations. A risk assessment showed drivers who text message while driving were 23.2 times more likely to be involved in a safety-critical event, compared with drivers who did not TWD.

Source: National Safety Council

Idaho Flagger Training

If you are a current Washington State Flagger instructor and want to teach in Idaho (Idaho flagger) you can if you take the following steps.

• Purchase the Idaho Instructor and student curriculum from ESC
• Request the application from ITD
• Return the application to ITD with the Idaho curriculum
• Once approved ITD will send you an approval letter and return the submitted material
• ITD will “cc” or notify ESC that the instructor is approved and can issue the Idaho flagger card.
• When ordering materials Instructors must then identify which state they are teaching in so they can get the appropriate student material.

If you have questions please email or call either Eric or Tina at ESC (800) 521-0778.

Stay safe