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Figure 2: Lightning strikes a communications Employers should train supervisors and workers to provide lightning safety warnings in sufficient time for everyone to reach a worksite’s safe shelters and take other appropriate precautions. In fact, about one-third of lightning-strike injuries occur indoors. A: Use the three slogans and four levels of lightning safety. Several states and US territories operate a federally approved state plan OSHA program. If signs of approaching thunderstorms occur, workers should not begin any task they cannot quickly stop. Crane hoists may continue only if a qualified person determines it is safe. Photo:NOAA. Proper planning and safe practices can easily increase lightning safety when working outdoors. 1. Seek Shelter in Buildings: Employers and supervisors should know and tell workers which buildings to go to after hearing thunder or seeing lightning. This is why it is very important to get to a safe place at the first signs of a thunderstorm. Below are some of the considerations in making a lightning safety plan. For situations which require advance notice of thunderstorms, NOAA recommends monitoring forecasts and radar observations from either commercial weather services or NOAA to stay informed of changing weather conditions. *K�`%kd���M8+�� Many lightning victims are caught outside during a storm because they did not act promptly to get to a safe place, ... OSHA Standards. Inform supervisors and workers to take action after hearing thunder, seeing lightning, or perceiving any other warning signs of approaching thunderstorms. Stay away from all metal objects, equipment, and surfaces that can conduct electricity. https://www.ehsinsight.com/blog/osha-lighting-standards-for-general-industries Avoid open areas, such as fields. Training should be provided for each outdoor worksite, so that supervisors and workers know in advance where a worksite’s safe shelters are and the time it takes to reach them. OSHA considers high winds as those exceeding 64.4 kilometers per hour (40 miles per hour), or 48.3 kilometers per hour (30 miles per hour) if the work involves material handling unless the employer takes precautions to protect employees from the hazardous effects of the wind. O���s����/Ӓ|o�%n�����B\ô�i��y�w?��qM�™} 0 ���M endstream endobj 444 0 obj <> endobj 445 0 obj <> endobj 446 0 obj <>stream When thunder roars, go indoors 3. Under the General Duty Clause, Section 5(a)(1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1970 (OSH Act), employers are required to provide their employees with a place of employment that “is free from recognizable hazards that are causing or likely to cause death or serious harm to employees.” The courts have interpreted OSHA’s general duty clause to mean that an employer has a legal obligation to provide a workplace free of conditions or activities that either the employer or industry recognizes as hazardous and that cause, or are likely to cause, death or serious physical harm to employees when there is a feasible method to abate the hazard. Do not shelter in sheds, pavilions, tents, or covered porches as they do not provide adequate protection from lightning. However, no systems can detect the “first strike,” detect all lightning, or predict lightning strikes. The most dangerous lightning is cloud-to-ground lightning, which can strike people, animals, trees, towers and buildings. OSHA Fact Sheet: Lightning Safety. Water does not attract lightning, but it is an excellent conductor of electricity. This level met the requirements listed in the building lease. We value your input and encourage you to give us your comments or questions. NOAA advises that nowhere outside is Worker activities at higher risk for lightning hazards include: Employers, supervisors, and workers should understand lightning risks, characteristics, and precautions to minimize workplace hazards. Lightning Safety Training: Employers should adequately train all workers on lightning safety. Figure 5: Work-related lightning fatalities. This fact sheet provides employers and workers at outdoor worksites with lightning safety recommendations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Many lightning victims are caught outside during a storm because they did not act quickly to get to a safe place, or they go back outside too soon after a storm has passed. Lightning strikes can severely injure or kill workers whose jobs involve working outdoors. If a worker has been retaliated against for using their rights, they must file a complaint with OSHA as soon as possible, but no later than 30 days. Consequently, it is important to watch the sky for storms developing overhead or nearby and get to a safe place prior to the first lightning strike. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA): National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Global Hydrology Resource Center, Lightning and Atmospheric Electricity Research. Myth: Heat lightning occurs after very hot summer days and poses no hazard. Although most lightning victims survive, people struck by lightning often report a variety of long-term, debilitating symptoms. OSHA and NOAA recommend that employers and supervisors follow these lightning safety best practices for workers whose jobs involve working outdoors: Check NOAA Weather Reports: Prior to beginning any outdoor work, employers and supervisors should check NOAA weather reports (weather.gov) and radio forecasts for all weather hazards. While nearly 90 percent of cloud-toground strikes occur within the region of falling rain, most of the remaining 10 percent of strikes occur up to 10 miles from rainy areas. You can use remote controls safety. For boating safety see. Seek fully-enclosed, substantial buildings with wiring and plumbing. No place outdoors is safe when thunderstorms are in the area 2. OSH offers free services to more than 260,000 private and public employers through its Consultative Services Bureau. Lightning is the atmospheric discharge of electricity. Lightning Safety When Working Outdoors ... the heaviest rainfall areas or even up to 10 miles from any rainfall. Fortunately, people can be safe if they follow some simple guidelines when thunderstorms are forecast. The average thunderstorm is six to ten miles wide. lightning; Photo: NOAA. Commercial lightning detection and notification services are available to monitor for lightning activity. H��W�nI}�+ꑖ���H�%��*�L��j��,.��~�V�����c�x������ԩK�^>��������ڣi��;����kJ�����W�z�k���Lh��5�y��`�:��o�Ӟ�K{׭N�M�e@i�m�7M�,�,ҮO��z��/�����+��o\������%�K��Ԟ�[Wt�/�� ]�]&{�G�K^dwE����d�u�:){�n�r��u�r������w�z/XJ>�X��U��Eg��Y��S�s�����z�k������G0*| � ���� j�+����f�20�5��ur1����'�|+e��]7���� �Ż�(�;��H>0�D^��R�q/�#����j9��J�lԏD��NĮ\B���Fe%"M,B3A����N�����b��0DѶ!Ȱ��c‚��c��̌�xA�X7bˮR�J|/Et�+K�O~"���~��}.jb��e���(���\�w���~l�1�� ��a�fض��ѠK�H�[9�t�2�&)E�R�,-> ���� wdY�A�3��0��!1+�_І�*3�� �%�`Q^~��t.����ۀ����bA#�[U This fact sheet provides employers and workers at outdoor worksites with lightning safety recommendations from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Figure 1: Lightning strikes tall tree; Photo:NOAA. which is the amount of illumination produced by a candle from 1 foot distance) for a variety of work environments which include offices, hallways and exit ways. NOAA recommends that employers first rely on NOAA weather reports, including NOAA Weather Radio All Hazards: www.nws.noaa.gov/nwr. A thirty-second lapse between when you see the lightning, and when you hear the thunder, indicates a distance of roughly eight miles. An employer’s EAP may include lightning warning or detection systems, which can provide advance warning of lightning hazards. Q: What are the four levels of lighting safety and provide a high degree of safety? Avoid wiring, plumbing, and fencing. Transportation Research Board of the National Academies. Lightning is often overlooked as an occupational hazard, but employers need awareness about lightning hazards to ensure their workers’ safety. For more information, to report an emergency, fatality, inpatient hospitalization, amputation, or loss of an eye, or to file a confidential compliant, or to request OSHA’s free On-site Consultation Program services for small and medium-sized businesses, contact your nearest OSHA office, visit www.osha.gov, or call OSHA at 1-800-321-OSHA (6742), TTY 1-877-889-5627. Many lightning deaths occur ahead of storms before any OSHA cautions that lightning is unpredictable and can strike up to 10 miles away from a rainstorm. Many lightning victims are caught outside during ... and the OSHA standards that apply to their workplace. 9 Lightning often strikes outside the area of heavy rain and may strike as far as 10 miles from any rainfall. Are forecast information, see: www.lightningsafety.noaa hoists may continue only if a qualified person it.: lightning strikes occur near the edge of the public retaliation, including lightning. 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