Working outside during the summer months gives workers an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors and some great weather. Take a few extra precautions to ensure a fun, enjoyable and safe summer.
Will Flower
In 2015, the official summer season lasts 95 days (from June 21, 2015 to September 23, 2015). During the summer, people across North America will be busy barbecuing, boating, swimming, fishing and vacationing. Summer time is fun time, but it is also a time when more vehicles are on the roadways resulting in busy streets. In addition to congested roadways, there are a number of other threats that require waste and recycling workers to be extra vigilant during the summer.
Busy Roadways
Highway patrol officers refer to the time between Memorial Day and Labor Day as the “deadly days of summer.” Statistically, there are more fatalities from motor vehicle accidents during the summer months than during the rest of the year. More traffic congestion requires drivers of collection vehicles to be extra cautious.
Kids at Play
Summer vacation means that many kids are at home. Kids playing in the street or in front yards, riding bikes and running to and from friends’ houses translates to greater risks in neighborhoods.
Hot, Hot, Hot
Working outside during the summer means that workers are at risk for a heat-related illness. Workers need to drink water or sports drinks throughout the day to replace fluids in the body. Workers should also wear appropriate clothing and use sunscreen. Managers and supervisors should be familiar with the signs of heat related illness including heat stress, heat exhaustion and heat stroke.
Firework Safety
Fourth of July is one of the biggest events of the summer. Fireworks that are tossed into a trash can cause a significant threat to waste collection workers. Non-spent explosives in the load can ignite and explode under pressure potentially causing burns, damaging hearing and starting fires.
Hot Coals
Barbecues and summer are a perfect combination. After the food is cooked and the cleanup is underway hot coals may be carelessly tossed in the trashcan. These hot coals can create a problem for workers on the collection vehicle who can be seriously burned. Additionally, hot coals can result in truck fires as the load can be ignited by the hot coals.
Bees and Wasps
Bees and wasps buzz around the garbage and recycling container throughout the summer. A worker who is not allergic to a bee or wasp sting may only get a reaction where the sting took place. However, people who are highly allergic to bee and wasp stings need to take extra special precautions as stings can result in potentially life-threatening reactions. The reaction can be made worse by multiple stings.
Ticks
Working outside may subject employees to tick bites especially in tick-infested areas. Insect repellant can be helpful. If a worker finds a tick on their skin, they should carefully remove the tick using tweezers, making sure the entire tick is removed.
Everyone deserves to have an enjoyable and injury free summer. Working outside during the summer months gives workers an opportunity to enjoy the outdoors and some great weather. But summer time also requires drivers and helpers on collection vehicles to take a few extra precautions to ensure a fun, enjoyable and safe summer.
Next month’s safety series will focus on fire prevention and ways to protect your people, equipment and facilities from damaging fire.
Will Flower is the General Manager of Winters Bros. Waste Systems on Long Island, NY. Will has 32 years of experience in the area of solid waste management and environmental protection. He has held operational and executive leadership positions at the Director’s Office of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency, Waste Management, Inc., Republic Services. Inc. and Green Stream Recycling.
Share your safety tip. Submit your suggestions to Will Flower at [email protected].