Heat Stress

Heat kills workers every summer, and it almost always kills people who were showing symptoms for a while first. The two things that decide the outcome are whether somebody noticed, and how fast they acted.

Prevention

• Drink before you are thirsty. Roughly a cup every 15–20 minutes in the heat. Thirst is a late signal, and by the time you feel it you are already behind.
• Rest in the shade, not in the sun with your shirt off. Cooling only happens somewhere cooler.
• New and returning workers are the highest risk. Most heat deaths happen in the first few days on the job, before the body adapts. Build up over a week — and someone back from a fortnight's holiday is a new worker again.
• Watch what else is loading you. Heavy PPE, respirators, dark clothing, no breeze, high humidity. Humidity matters more than temperature, because sweat that cannot evaporate does not cool you.
• Schedule the heaviest work for the coolest part of the day where the job allows.

Heat exhaustion — act now

Heavy sweating, cold clammy skin, weakness, dizziness, nausea, headache, fast weak pulse.

Stop work. Get them to shade or air conditioning. Loosen clothing. Cool with wet cloths or a fan. Sips of water. If they are not clearly improving in 15 minutes, or cannot keep water down, call for help.

Heat stroke — call 911

Body hot to touch. Skin may be dry or may still be sweating. Confusion, slurred speech, staggering, collapse, seizure.

This is a medical emergency and people die from it in minutes.

• Call 911 first.
• Cool aggressively while you wait — ice packs to the neck, armpits and groin, cold water, shade, fan. Cold water immersion if you can do it safely.
• Do not give fluids to someone confused or unconscious.
• Never leave them alone.

The buddy system

Confusion is a symptom, which means the person in trouble is the least able to recognise it. Somebody else has to notice. If a workmate is acting oddly, stumbling, or has gone quiet, treat it as heat until proven otherwise.