external operations experience update: slips, falls and other winter hazards department of energy...
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External Operations Experience Update: Slips, Falls and Other Winter Hazards
Department of EnergyOperating Experience Work Group
December 8, 2015Larry Stirling,
Office of Analysis (AU-23)
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Slips, Falls and Other Winter Hazards
• Driving• Snow• Preventing Slips in Snow and Ice• Power Lines• Cold Stress• Stay Informed• Your Family• Resources
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Winter Hazard Precautions
• Winter Driving• Brakes: Brakes should provide even and
balanced braking. Also check that brake fluid is at the proper level.
• Cooling System: Ensure a proper mixture of 50/50 antifreeze and water in the cooling system at the proper level.
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Winter Driving
• Oil: Check that oil is at proper level.
• Electrical System: Check the ignition system and make sure that the battery is fully charged and that the connections are clean. Check that the alternator belt is in good condition with proper tension.
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Winter Driving
• Exhaust System: Check exhaust for leaks and that all clamps and hangers are snug.
• Tires: depth and no signs of damage or uneven wear. Check for proper tire inflation.
• Check for proper tread• Engine: Inspect all engine systems.• Visibility Systems: Inspect all exterior lights,
defrosters (windshield and rear window), and wipers. Install winter windshield wipers.
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Winter Driving
• Traction aids (bag of sand or cat litter)• Emergency flares• Jumper cables• Snacks• Water• Road maps• Blankets, change of clothes
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Winter Driving
• Cellphone or two-way radio• Windshield ice scraper• Snow brush• Flashlight with extra batteries• Shovel• Tow chain
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Winter Driving
• Stranded in a Vehicle• Call for emergency assistance if needed, response time
may be slow in severe winter weather conditions. Notify your supervisor of your situation.
• Do not leave the vehicle to search for assistance unless help is visible within 100 yards. You may become disoriented and get lost in blowing and drifting snow.
• Display a trouble sign by hanging a brightly colored cloth on the vehicle’s radio antenna and raising the hood.
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Winter Driving
• Turn on the vehicle's engine for about 10 minutes each hour and run the heat to keep warm.
• Turn on the vehicle's dome light when the vehicle is running as an additional signal.
• Beware of carbon monoxide poisoning. • Keep the exhaust pipe clear of snow, and open a
downwind window slightly for ventilation
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SNOW
• Shoveling Snow• Shoveling snow can be a strenuous activity,
particularly because cold weather can be tasking on the body.
• There is a potential for exhaustion, dehydration, back injuries, or heart attacks.
• During snow removal in addition to following the tips for avoiding cold stress, such as taking frequent breaks in warm areas, there are other precautions workers can take to avoid injuries.
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SNOW
• Workers should warm-up before the activity, scoop small amounts of snow at a time and where possible, push the snow instead of lifting it.
• The use of proper lifting technique is necessary to avoid back and other injuries when shoveling snow: keep the back straight, lift with the legs and do not turn or twist the body.
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SNOW
• Using Power Equipment It is important to make sure that powered equipment, such as snow blowers are properly grounded to protect workers from electric shocks or electrocutions.
• When performing maintenance or cleaning, make sure the equipment is properly guarded and is disconnected from power sources.
• Snow blowers commonly cause lacerations or amputations when operators attempt to clear jams with the equipment turned on. Never attempt to clear a jam by hand.
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SNOW
• Clearing Snow from Roofs and Working at Heights• Employers must evaluate snow removal tasks for
hazards and plan how to do the work safely. Workers should be aware of the potential for unexpected hazards due to the weather conditions, for example, layers of ice can form as the environmental temperature drops, making surfaces even more slippery
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SNOW
• A surface that is weighed down by snow must be inspected by a competent person to determine if it is structurally safe for workers to access it, because it may be at risk of collapsing.
• Snow covered rooftops can hide hazards such as skylights that workers can fall through. Electrical hazards may also exist from overhead power lines or snow removal equipment.
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Preventing Slips on Snow and Ice
• To prevent slips, trips, and falls, employers should clear snow and ice from walking surfaces, and spread deicer, as quickly as possible after a winter storm. When walking on snow or ice is unavoidable workers should be trained to:
• Wear footwear that has good traction and insulation (e.g. insulated and water resistant boots or rubber over-shoes with good rubber treads)
• Take short steps and walk at a slower pace to react quickly to changes in traction
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Power Lines
• Repairing Downed or Damaged Power Lines• Repairing and/or replacing damaged power lines in severe
winter weather conditions are especially hazardous. • A major hazard is snow, because the moisture can reduce
the insulation value of protective equipment, and could cause electrocution.
• In these conditions de-energized work is safer, but if energized work must be done, qualified workers and supervisors must first do a hazard analysis that includes evaluating the weather conditions and identifying how to safely do the job.
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Power Lines
• Electrocution by contacting downed energized power lines or contacting broken tree limbs in contact with downed energized power lines. Learn more at: Line Clearance Tree Trimming Operations (OSHA Electric Power eTools).
• Falls from heights. • Being injured by equipment such as chain saws (
Chain Saw Safety (PDF*) (OSHA Quick Card)) and chippers (Chipper Machine Safety (PDF*) (OSHA Quick Card)).
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Cold Stress • How cold is too cold?• What constitutes extreme cold and its effects can vary across
different areas of the country. In regions that are not used to winter weather, near freezing temperatures are considered "extreme cold.“
• A cold environment forces the body to work harder to maintain its temperature. Whenever temperatures drop below normal and wind speed increases, heat can leave your body more rapidly.
• Wind chill is the temperature your body feels when air temperature and wind speed are combined. For example, when the air temperature is 40°F, and the wind speed is 35 mph, the effect on the exposed skin is as if the air temperature was 28°F.
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Cold Stress
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Cold Stress
• Cold stress occurs by driving down the skin temperature and eventually the internal body temperature (core temperature). This may lead to serious health problems, and may cause tissue damage, and possibly death
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Cold Stress
• What are the risk factors that contribute to cold stress?
• Some of the risk factors that contribute to cold stress are:
• Wetness/dampness, dressing improperly, and exhaustion
• Predisposing health conditions such as hypertension, hypothyroidism, and diabetes
• Poor physical conditioning
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Cold Stress
• What is hypothermia?• Hypothermia occurs when body heat is lost
faster than it can be replaced and the normal body temperature (98.6°F) drops to less than 95°F. Hypothermia is most likely at very cold temperatures, but it can occur even at cool temperatures (above 40°F), if a person becomes chilled from rain, sweat, or submersion in cold water.
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Cold Stress
• What are the symptoms of hypothermia?• Mild symptoms: • An exposed worker is alert. • He or she may begin to shiver and stomp the
feet in order to generate heat
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Cold Stress
• What can be done for a person suffering from hypothermia?
• Call 911 immediately in an emergency; otherwise seek medical assistance as soon as possible.
• Move the person to a warm, dry area. • Remove wet clothes and replace with dry clothes,
cover the body (including the head and neck) with layers of blankets; and with a vapor barrier (e.g. tarp, garbage bag). Do not cover the face.
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Cold Stress
• What is frostbite?• Frostbite is an injury to the body that is caused by freezing
of the skin and underlying tissues. The lower the temperature, the more quickly frostbite will occur. Frostbite typically affects the extremities, particularly the feet and hands. Amputation may be required in severe cases.
• What are the symptoms of frostbite?• Reddened skin develops gray/white patches. • Numbness in the affected part. • Feels firm or hard. • Blisters may occur in the affected part, in severe cases.
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Cold Stress
• What can be done for a person suffering from frostbite?
• Follow the recommendations described above for hypothermia.
• Do not rub the affected area to warm it because this action can cause more damage.
• Do not apply snow/water. Do not break blisters.
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Cold Stress
• What is immersion/trench foot?• Trench Foot or immersion foot is caused by
prolonged exposure to wet and cold temperatures.
• It can occur at temperatures as high as 60°F if the feet are constantly wet. Non-freezing injury occurs because wet feet lose heat 25-times faster than dry feet.
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Cold Stress
• To prevent heat loss, the body constricts the blood vessels to shut down circulation in the feet.
• The skin tissue begins to die because of a lack of oxygen and nutrients and due to the buildup of toxic products.
• What are the symptoms of trench foot?
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Cold Stress
• Redness of the skin, swelling, numbness, blisters
• What can be done for a person suffering from immersion foot?
• Call 911 immediately in an emergency; otherwise seek medical assistance as soon as possible.
• Remove the shoes, or boots, and wet socks. • Dry the feet.
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Stay Informed
• Weather Apps• National Weather Service. The National
Weather Service's Daily Briefing is a website that provides information on the weather outlook.
• NOAA Weather Radio. A network of radio stations that continuously broadcast weather information from the nearest National Weather Service office.
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Your Family
• Make a Family Communication Plan. Your family may not be together during an extreme winter event, so it is important to know how you will contact one another, how you will get back together, and what you will do during an emergency.
• Be sure to check on older neighbors and family members; assist as necessary.
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Your Family
• Heating Checklist• Turning on the stove for heat is not safe; have
at least one of the following heat sources in case the power goes out: – Extra blankets, sleeping bags, and warm winter
coats– Fireplace with plenty of dry firewood or a gas log
fireplace– Portable space heaters or kerosene heaters
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Your Family
• Check with your local fire department to make sure that kerosene heaters are legal in your area.
• Use electric space heaters with automatic shut-off switches and non-glowing elements.
• Never place a space heater on top of furniture or near water.
• Never leave children unattended near a space heater.
• Keep heat sources at least 3 feet away from furniture and drapes.
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Your Family
• Have the following safety equipment: – Chemical fire extinguisher– Smoke alarm in working order (Check prior to winter
storm season and change batteries, if needed.)– Carbon monoxide detector (Check prior to winter
storm season and change batteries, if needed.)• Never use an electric generator indoors, inside
the garage, or near the air intake of your home because of the risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
.
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Your Family
• Food and Safety Checklist• Have a week’s worth of food and safety supplies. If
you live far from other people, have more supplies on hand. Make sure you have the following supplies:
• Drinking water• Canned/no-cook food (bread, crackers, dried fruits)• Non-electric can opener• Baby food and formula (if baby in the household)
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Your Family
• Prescription drugs and other medicine• First-aid kit• Rock-salt to melt ice on walkways• Supply of cat litter or bag of sand to add
traction on walkways• Flashlight and extra batteries• Battery-powered lamps or lanterns
(To prevent the risk of fire, avoid using candles
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Your Family
• Water Checklist• Keep a water supply. Extreme cold can cause
water pipes in your home to freeze and sometimes break.
• Leave all water taps slightly open so they drip continuously.
• Keep the indoor temperature warm.• Allow more heated air near pipes. Open kitchen
cabinet doors under the kitchen sink.
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Your Family
• If your pipes do freeze, do not thaw them with a torch. Thaw the pipes slowly with warm air from an electric hair dryer.
• If you cannot thaw your pipes, or if the pipes have broken open, use bottled water or get water from a neighbor’s home.
• Fill the bathtub or have bottled water on hand.• In an emergency, if no other water is available, snow can
be melted for water. Bringing water to a rolling boil for one minute will kill most germs but won’t get rid of chemicals sometimes found in snow.
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Resources
• Safe Winter Driving (OSHA) https://www.osha.gov/Publications/safeDriving.html
• Falls and Other Hazards to Workers Removing Snow from Rooftops and Other Elevated Surfaces: https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA-3513roof-snow-hazard.pdf
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Resources
• Winter Weather: Plan, Equip and Train: https://www.osha.gov/dts/weather/winter_weather/hazards_precautions.html
• OSHA Cold Stress Guide: https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/emergencypreparedness/guides/cold.html
• OSHA Quick Card: Protecting Workers from Cold Stress: https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3156.pdf
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Resources
• National Weather Service: Daily Briefing: https://www.osha.gov/Publications/OSHA3156.pdf
• NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards: http://www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr/
• Family Communication Plan (DHS): http://www.ready.gov/make-a-plan
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Resources
• NOAA’s National Weather Service Says: Know Your Winter Weather Terms: http://www.noaanews.noaa.gov/stories/s794c.htm
• Winter Weather (CDC): http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/winter/index.asp
• American Automobile Association: Winter Driving Tips: http://exchange.aaa.com/safety/roadway-safety/winter-driving-tips/#.Vl8UtXnluuA
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Resources
• National Safety Council: Winter Safety: http://exchange.aaa.com/safety/roadway-safety/winter-driving-tips/#.Vl8UtXnluuA
• NIOSH Fast Facts: Protecting Yourself From Cold Stress: http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/2010-115/pdfs/2010-115.pdf
