Taking constant breaks, drinking water every 20 minutes and watching out for one another are the best ways to fight heat illness.
vomiting and require immediate professional medical attention— often requiring life-saving techniques like the TACO method( tarp-assisted cooling oscillation) where an overheated worker is doused with ice water to cool their core as quickly as possible.
The TACO method, just like CPR, is a life-saving intervention and should be administered until help arrives.
Preventative Measures We know you are probably tired of hearing the word“ hydration,” but this should reiterate the importance of simply drinking water throughout the work day and at home. Staying hydrated is the most crucial factor in preventing heat-related illnesses and the easiest precaution to take. Construction workers are advised to drink water frequently, in small amounts, every 15-20 minutes, while avoiding caffeinated beverages, since they can contribute to dehydration.
Scheduling Regular Breaks Work still must be done, despite the weather. However, schedules should be adjusted to minimize exposure to extreme heat due to the lack of official guidelines.
In a move that was welcomed, but also alarmingly overdue, the Department of Labor says it’ s close to publishing official regulations for protecting construction workers from the hazards of heat illness while on the job. With no official heat standard in place, enforcement is murky if non-existent for OSHA and citations fall under the selfpolicing guidelines of the broad general duties clause.
Week 4: Slips, Trips and Falls
The last week of safety month focuses on reducing slips, trips and falls on jobsites across the country— with an emphasis on falls. Falls can happen anywhere and despite decades of improved awareness and legions of tech-inspired prevention apparatus, falls remain the most common form of serious injury on jobsites across the country.
There are few certainties in life: taxes, death and gravity, and few folks on jobsites are more familiar with the power of gravity than the workers scurrying below. As construction projects stretch higher and higher, the chances of anything, and everything, falling and becoming lethal also
www. contractorshotline. com June 14, 2024 11