Protecting Workers During and After Tornados
Sep 14
posted by Clarity Testing in
Weather, construction site safety, Workplace Safety
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Tornados can strike with little or no warning. Although they occur more frequently in the Midwestern, Southeastern and Southwestern United States, no state in the U.S. is immune to them. Tornados are incredibly violent storms; wind in the vortex can exceed 300 miles per hour, which is sufficient to destroy virtually anything in its path. Between 1992 and 2006 in the U.S, there were 33 occupational deaths attributed to tornados.
OSHA has created a new web page in order to help workers and employers prepare for a tornado and protect themselves in a tornado's aftermath. Since tornados can strike abruptly and without warning, employers must be cognizant of how to take proper precautions to protect employees.
Look for the Warning Signs
The earlier you are warned the better. When weather is stormy or unpredictable, employers should monitor a weather service for updates. Computer alert systems (such as WeatherBug) can signal a computer work station when dangerous weather conditions exist. Parts of the country particularly vulnerable to tornadic activity often have local warning systems in place, such as sirens.
Some of the signs of an impending tornado include:
- Dark, often greenish clouds or sky
- Wall clouds
- Large hail
- Funnel clouds
- Roaring noise
Plan for Safety
The best safety plans are those made before disaster strikes. Employers should identify shelter locations in the workplace, train employees when and how to take shelter, and set up some sort of accountability procedure (so that all employees can be accounted for after the storm passes). OSHA recommends the following accountability procedure for tornados:
- Create a company system for knowing who is in the building at any given time
- Establish an alarm system to warn employees
- Test this system frequently by conducting drills
- Develop plans to communicate warnings to individuals who may have disabilities (for instance, who cannot hear the alarms)
- Assure that employees with disabilities are able to participate in the drills (for instance, patients in wheelchairs)
- Make sure that employees who do not speak English well know the alarm system and can participate in drills
- Design a system so that workers, visitors, vendors, customers, and others can be accounted for as they arrive at the shelter
- Use a prepared roster or checklist
- Take head counts
- Be sure the system allows for tracking non-employees who may be on premises at the time
- Assign specific responsibilities in advance to key employees (such as taking roll, counting heads, rounding up non-employees, settling employees into the shelter, and so on)
- Designate employees for specific tasks, train them, and drill regularly
- Train an alternate for every single task in the same way (so that no task is overlooked because somebody is not at work that day)
Underground is the best place to be during a tornado, but that is not always possible. If underground shelter is not available, the next-best areas for shelter are those as far removed from doors, windows, and outside walls as possible, that is, an interior room. The more secure the room, the better. Shelter areas constructed of reinforced concrete, brick, or blocks and having a heavy concrete floor and substantial roof are safest. Rooms with flat, wide-span roofs are not a good choice (such as auditoriums or gyms).
Individuals caught outside as a tornado approaches should seek shelter immediately, ideally underground or in a well-built interior room. If that is not possible, such individuals should be taught to find the lowest ground possible,
If an employee is caught in a vehicle as a tornado approaches, they should be trained to:
- Stay in the vehicle—resist the urge to get out and try to "make a run for it"
- Put on their seatbelt
- Keep themselves below the window level
- If possible, cover themselves with a blanket or a jacket. If that is not available, they should cover their heads as much as possible with their arms
Employers should keep an emergency kit on site.
Tornado are dangerous, unpredictable, and can occur with warning. Being prepared will increase the odds in your favor.
References:
http://www.osha.gov/as/opa/quicktakes/qt061511.html#8
http://www.redcross.org/www-files/Documents/pdf/Preparedness/checklists/Tornado.pdf
http://www.bt.cdc.gov/disasters/tornadoes/prepared.asp?
http://www.ready.gov/america/beinformed/tornadoes.html
http://www.ready.gov/business/_downloads/emergency_supplies.pdf