Canadian Occupational Safety

STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS STRESS By Amanda Silliker S everal hundred metres off the coast of Newfoundland, 2,000 workers are building a platform for the Hebron heavy oil project before it is towed to its offshore location in 2017. Every day, crews take a ferry to and from the work site where high winds and wet environments prevail. Working in these types of conditions means cold stress is always top of mind. "We are constantly working around water. We are always getting winds off the ocean," says Joe Lake, operations/safety interface lead on the Hebron project in Bull Arm, N.L. "Cold stress is very much a concern for us. It's a constant reminder for us on our project here." Cold stress (lowered internal body temperature) is not just an issue among companies operating in the middle of the ocean; workers in industries all across Canada need to be aware of this hazard. It can be a problem for anyone who works outside, such as within forestry, construction, transportation, mining, utilities, emergency response and outdoor municipal work. And it's not just an issue in the winter, notes Lake, who is also the president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Occupational Health and Safety Association. "Even in the summer, when you consider some of these factors, wind chill and wet clothing, things like that, cold stress starts to occur in warm seasons as well," he says. The fi rst issue that may arise when a worker is under cold stress is frost nip, which occurs when ear lobes, noses, cheeks, fi ngers or toes are exposed to the cold and the top layer of the skin freezes. The skin turns white and may feel numb. "Sometimes you don't even feel when your face is getting cold," says Frédéric Boucher, vice-president of consulting services at Medial OHS Consulting Services in Quebec City. "It's usually your colleague who is going to tell you your face is white. Make sure your skin is covered fi rst and not exposed to wind." The next injury that can occur is frostbite, which is the freezing of the underlying tissue. Symptoms include redness and swelling, grey or white patches, coldness, tingling and numbness. Blisters may occur in extreme cases. The areas where the blood vessels are small and close to the surface of the skin, such as the extremities, are at the highest risk. When a worker suffers from frostbite, his blood vessels may be severely and permanently damaged and blood circulation may stop in the affected tissue. "There can be some ice crystals on your skin that can cause damage if you rub it. You can damage your vascularization and tissue and extremi- ties — never rub it," says Boucher, adding warm water should not be applied to their affected area either. "Gently warm up inside… and let your skin warm up gradually." The area should be loosely covered with gauze and the victim trans- ported to a health-care facility. Thawing is best done at a hospital. If the worker stays in the cold too long and does not seek medical attention quickly, the damage can be permanent. "You are going to break the blood vessels and the skin is going to turn black because there is not going to be any oxygen from the vascularization and the blood is not going to be able to get to the tissue, then it's going to die," says Boucher. "You can have gangrene and lose a toe or fi nger." Cold stress can eventually lead to hypothermia (abnormally low core body temperature), which is a gradual process. The fi rst warning signs will be feeling cold, shivering, grogginess and poor judgment or confused thinking. "Which is why it's a concern for us safety folks," says Lake. "You are probably starting to make poor decisions around the work and taking risks you probably wouldn't in your normal state." At this stage, encourage the worker to stay active, bring her into a warm area and get her warm food and drink, all of which are forms of treatment, according to Workplace Safety North. Remove any wet clothing or add another layer if needed. Moderate symptoms include: vio- lent shivering, inability to think or pay attention, slow and shallow breath- ing, slurred speech and poor body co-ordination, according to Work- SafeBC. Severe symptoms are: loss of consciousness, little or no breathing and weak, irregular or non-existent pulse. If the worker is exhibiting these symptoms, call 911 immediately and move him to a warm, dry area. Remove any wet clothing and wrap the worker in warm covers. Body-to-body contact can help rewarm the victim slowly. If the victim is conscious, give her warm (but not hot), sweet drinks, such as power drinks. "Handle the person very cautiously with no sudden movements or jerk- ing because he already has an elevated heart rate, so you could actually bring on a heart attack. You have to treat him with a lot of care and slowly," says Lake. Because hypothermia happens grad- ually, workers may not recognize it in themselves, so they need to look out for each other. If hypothermia is not addressed, death can occur. "As long as you feel cold and stay out- side a long time, it is going to be at the end that your respiration will be erratic, your heart will have problems with beat- ing and providing oxygen from your blood to the upper and lower parts of the body and you will fall unconscious at one point and fall asleep and never wake up," says Boucher. While it's quite rare for this to happen while working outside, it can occur if a worker falls asleep on the job or hits his head and loses conscious- ness, he adds. Due to all the serious hazards of working in the cold, no one should be working alone outdoors in the winter, says Chris Serratore, health and safety specialist at Workplace Safety North in Thunder Bay, Ont. Trench foot, or immersion foot, is another consideration when working in the cold. It's caused by prolonged exposure to wet, damp or cold tem- peratures. Trench foot is certainly on the radar at the Hebron project. "We are working around the wet environment and a lot of times it's very labour intensive what the workers are doing here. Some of the workers spend a lot of time with their feet in Frostbite, hypothermia serious concerns when working outdoors Cold stress can eventually lead to hypothermia (abnormally low core body temperature), which is a gradual process. The fi rst warning signs will be feeling cold, shivering, grogginess and poor judgment or confused thinking. "Which is why it's a concern for us safety folks," says Lake. "You are probably starting to make poor 40 Canadian Occupational Safety www.cos-mag.com

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