Smartphone app protects outdoor workers

Wondering what the heat index is for your employees working outside? A new mobile phone application has removed the guesswork.

OSHA announced a free app that provides information and offers advice to employees working outdoors and their supervisors. The Heat app is available in English and Spanish on devices using Android platforms and will soon be available for BlackBerry and the iPhone.

The app uses heat index data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration combined with the user's location to determine necessary precautions employees should take, according to the agency.

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Additionally, the app includes the signs and symptoms associated with heat stroke, heat exhaustion, and other heat-related illnesses. It also provides first-aid steps to take in an emergency.

Supervisors can access information on how to gradually build up the workload for new workers and how to train workers on heat illness signs and symptoms. They can also contact OSHA directly through the app.

More than 30 workers died from heat stroke in 2009, and thousands become ill from heat-related illnesses each year. Those at particularly high risk include construction workers, farm workers, roofers, landscapers, baggage handlers, and other air transportation workers.

Read more at the WorkersComp Forum homepage.

September 6, 2011

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