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As the summer continues to scorch, there doesn’t appear to be any relief in sight for folks who work outside for a living.
Right on the heels of a record-breaking summer in 2023, where the Northern Hemisphere repeatedly smashed record-high temperatures and collectively recorded the hottest average temperature on record, AccuWeather is predicting another 2-degree rise in average temperatures this summer.
With extreme temperatures and prolonged periods of unbearable heat becoming the norm, understanding how to recognize, treat and avoid heat-related illnesses on a jobsite is all we can do.
Human beings are unique within the animal kingdom for many reasons, and our uncanny ability to cool ourselves is one of the most ingenious.
As soon as your body's internal temperature starts rising, your hypothalamus, which is also in charge of controlling sleep cycles and hunger levels, tells eccrine sweat glands all over your body that it's time to sweat. As the sweat emerges, the excess body heat is used to convert beads of sweat into vapor, causing you to begin to cool by a process called thermoregulation.
Hydration, It’s a Lifestyle
None of that fancy science stuff works without water — so just like safety is a year-round commitment, so is hydration. Most experts advise looking at hydration as more of a habit than a task that starts before you even step on a jobsite.
According to the Occupational Health & Safety Administration (OSHA), a good drinking habit for a crane or equipment operator at work is drinking water every 15 minutes. Remember, if you’re thirsty, you’re already dehydrated.
The Silent Danger of Heat Illness
OSHA reported 2,830 heat-related illnesses in 2022 alone, a number that is surely underreported due to lack of awareness and reporting mechanisms in place.
Crane operators are particularly vulnerable to heat illness due to their exposure to direct sunlight, limited or inconsistent shade, and the physical and cognitive demands of their job.
It’s important to note that, just because you’re not in direct sunlight digging with a shovel, your brain, while only accounting for 2% of your bodyweight, burns 20% of your calories — and it needs water to turn those calories into energy.
Understanding the symptoms of heat stress, heat exhaustion and heat stroke can improve safety, morale and will save lives. Heat stress and mild heat exhaustion are fairly easy to treat with a little shade, hydration and rest. However, just as quickly as things can get better, they can turn potentially fatal. Severe cases of heat stroke involve loss-of-consciousness, seizures and vomiting and require immediate professional medical attention.
Heat and Helmets
It is a bit ironic that the helmet you’re wearing to protect your head might actually be contributing to overheating. Research shows that, when working outside in a 90-degree-Fahrenheit setting, white hard hats provided a measurably cooler environment around a worker’s head. Meanwhile, orange hard hats or high-visibility yellow hats resulted in the highest average temperatures, accounting for a staggering 10-degree-Fahrenheit difference.
Preventative Measures
We’re sure you are tired of hearing the word “hydration,” but this should reiterate the importance of simply drinking water throughout the workday and at home. Staying hydrated is the most crucial factor in preventing heat-related illnesses and the easiest precaution to take.
Crane operators 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, whenever possible, 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 self-policing guidelines of the broad general duties clause.
As the heat continues to take its toll on the planet and all who inhabit it, awareness around heat illness continues to evolve as the inherent dangers of the future jobsite evolve along with them, presenting us with a brand new set of issues to address next year.
And remember … stay hydrated!
