More than one weather forecast has this year’s summer temperatures in Cook County and the Chicago area to be even hotter than last year, with some experts predicting Chicagoland to hit almost a full month (27 days) of temperatures exceeding 90 degrees before fall arrives. That’s hot, especially for anyone who works outside like our construction workers have to do. Read, “Illinois’ Hot Summer: Here’s What the Weather Experts are Saying,” written by Riley O’Neil and published by WROK1440 on May 24, 2024.
Heat can kill or cause catastrophic injuries from recognized heat illnesses, such as heat cramps; heat exhaustion; or heat stroke. In fact, more people are reported to have died last year from the effects of excessive heat than any year since 1979 (when they began keeping track of heat deaths), according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data compiled by the Associated Press. Read, “AP Analysis finds 2023 set record for US heat deaths, killing in areas that used to handle the heat,” written by Seth Borenstein, Mary Katherin Wildeman, and Anita Snow and published by the Associated Press on May 31, 2024.
Sadly, workers will perish this year from heat-related injuries in what are preventable accidents. Protecting workers from heat dangers is one of the many duties of safety and care placed upon employers and others with possession, custody, or control of aspects of the workplace.
The growing danger of workers being hurt or killed from heat exposure is so significant in this country that in April 2022, OSHA designated it as an enforcement priority in its National Emphasis Program (NEP) for Outdoor and Indoor Heat-Related Hazards. Read, OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration). 2022. National Emphasis Program—Outdoor and Indoor Heat-Related Hazards. Directive Number CPL 03-00-024.
Ironworkers’ Risk of Heat Stress, Heat Illness, and Heat Injuries on the Job
Of course, heat is not just a danger posed during the summer months from rising outdoor temperatures, like those faced by Cook County ironworkers on the job at our various construction sites. Dangerous heat exposure is just as risky for those at work indoors, such as those employed to work in local manufacturing plants and of course, iron and steel mills and foundries.
As the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) explains:
Millions of U.S. workers are exposed to heat in their workplaces. Although illness from exposure to heat is preventable, every year, thousands become sick from occupational heat exposure, and some cases are fatal….
Hazardous heat exposure can occur indoors or outdoors, and can occur during any season if the conditions are right, not only during heat waves.
Exertional Heat Stroke: Death From Heat
The cruel truth is that heat can kill. This happens in what is called an “exertional heat stroke,” where the body temperature of the victim reaches at least 104°F. The normal internal temperature of the human body is 98.6°F.
If the body cannot combat rising external temperatures and the body’s internal temperature rises at least 5.4°F, then this causes a deadly “cardiovascular overload…” with “multiorgan injury,” or fatal exertional heat stroke. Read, Garcia CK, Renteria LI, Leite-Santos G, Leon LR, Laitano O. Exertional heat stroke: pathophysiology and risk factors. BMJ Med. 2022 Oct 11;1(1):e000239.
Other Serious Bodily Harm from Heat
Even if the ironworker is blessed to survive heat exposure without suffering a heat stroke, other very severe injuries can happen. These include heat exhaustion, heat cramps, and heat stress. Heat stress is commonplace in steel and iron industrial environments.
For those ironworkers who show symptoms of heat exhaustion, for instance, immediate emergency medical care is needed. Heat exhaustion can permanently impact internal organs, including the kidneys, which can ultimately result in “acute kidney injury,” or AKI. See, Chapman CL, Johnson BD, Parker MD, Hostler D, Pryor RR, Schlader Z. Kidney physiology and pathophysiology during heat stress and the modification by exercise, dehydration, heat acclimation and aging. Temperature (Austin). 2020 Oct 13;8(2):108-159.
Heat Dangers for Ironworkers in Cook County Steel Plant Environments
For those working in our local steel and iron mills, the perils of being seriously hurt or killed from a “heat-related illness” (HRI) are particularly great. Casting and melting workers are known to face an exceptional danger of being hurt by heat exposure. Read “A Guide to Manage Heat Stress–Related Injuries and Illness in the Iron and Steel Industry,” written by Rupkatha Bardhan, Melina Eaker, William R. Gaskins, and Jacob Crissup and published by AIST Safety First in October 2021 (“Iron and Steel Study”).
From the Iron and Steel Study, page 52:
Heat stress can cause serious heat related illness including heat stroke, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, heat rash and heat syncope. Heat stress can also cause fatigue and distress in employees, which may result in distractions, causing injuries at work.
The indoor workplace has high levels of environmental heat from ovens and molten metal. Wearing heavy protective clothing to prevent skin burns from molten metal can exacerbate the heat stress effects.
Working extended hours near a furnace or oven can also be a risk factor for heat stress. Environmental heat measurements underestimate the risk of HRI in these situations.
For ironworkers in the plant, there are shockingly great risks of permanent harm suffered from heat exposure itself or from fatal accidents where subsequent investigations reveal that heat fatigue or confusion was a contributing factor to the tragic event.
Any ironworker on the job in the casting, melting, or reheat furnace areas of the iron and steel plants must be particularly alert to the dangers of immediate or long-term exposure to extreme heat where permanent harm or death can result.
Of note, those who have not had the time to build up a personal tolerance to the hot work environment (think newbies or temps) have a very great risk of being hurt from the heat. Another problem: any ironworker who is on the job after a fun night out, where festive beverages (even just a few beers) may have caused dehydration, will have a heightened risk of suffering heat related injuries.
Ironworker Heat Exposure Injuries in Cook County, Illinois
For any ironworker on the job in the Chicagoland area who suffers harm from extreme heat, whether outside on a construction site or indoors on a factory floor, the dangers can be debilitating or even fatal. Heat stroke takes the lives of workers every year, even though employers and others with legal duties of care and safety are mandated to keep them safe from harm.
For any ironworker in Cook County that has been harmed from exposure to high temperatures, or in an accident where heat extremes contributed to the event, they will have legal rights of recompense available to them and their loved ones under the state laws of Illinois or in some instances, provided by federal law. This may involve civil causes of action in addition to claims made under Illinois Workers’ Compensation protections.
For more, read:
- August 2023 Heat Dome in Illinois and Indiana: OSHA Warnings to Employers
- Extreme Heat on the Job: Danger of Severe Worker Injuries or Death
- Hot Workplace: Injuries or Death from Heat Exposure in Indoor Work Environments
- What is the Employer’s General Duty Clause?
Cook County ironworkers are respected professionals who bravely face perils every day on the job as they do their work. Heat exposure is a known danger for which they deserve protection. Please be careful out there!
