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Winter Weather Safety

When winter weather strikes, it can damage your equipment and cause harm to your employees. Keep your employees safe in winter weather with these tips. 

Want more information? Download our complete guide to winter construction site prep!

Personal Safety in Winter Conditions

Prevent slips, trips, and falls.

A boom lift with Hugg & Hall stickers in winter weather. The tires and top of the machinery are dusted with snow.

As temperatures approach the freezing point, it’s necessary for your company to help prevent slips, trips & falls. Thin patches of ice begin to occur when air temperatures reach the 30s and become dangerous quickly.

Proper PPE (Personal Protective Equipment) plays a significant role in keeping employees safe. Winter PPE includes non-slip footwear, gloves, jackets/coats, and hard-hat liners. This article from Construct Connect has additional information about winter PPE. 

Even when your team has the appropriate PPE, equipment and ladders create additional jobsite hazards in winter. Conduct routine inspections for surface ice on your equipment. If you detect any snow or ice, clear the surface immediately and make sure your team’s footwear is free of snow and ice. As always, make sure your team is in their fall-protection gear for additional safety. 

 

Recognize cold-related illness and act quickly.

Know the signs of hypothermia, frostbite, and trench foot and be prepared to administer first aid while you wait for emergency services. Your quick action can save a life.

Hypothermia

Early signs of hypothermia include shivering, loss of coordination, confusion, and fatigue. Prolonged hypothermia leads to blue skin, dilation of the pupils, lowered pulse rate, and a possible loss of consciousness.

If an individual on your team is experiencing the symptoms of hypothermia, alert the job supervisor and request medical assistance. Move the victim into a warm area. Remove any wet clothing and cover the victim with additional clothing or blankets. Warm beverages may help increase their body temperature. Once their body temperature has increased, keep them warm and dry.

Frostbite

Frostbite begins with a loss of feeling and color in affected areas, and can cause permanent damage to body tissue. It can even lead to limb amputation. Frostbite symptoms include reduced blood flow, numbness, tingling, stinging, and pale, waxy skin. The nose, ears, cheeks, chin, fingers, and toes are most commonly affected by frostbite. 

If an employee is suffering from frostbite, take them to a warm area. The victim should avoid using the affected appendage and immerse it in warm—never hot—water. If no warm water is available, keep the affected area warm with body heat. Never rub the frostbitten area and do not expose it to direct heat. 

Trench Foot

Trench foot is an injury caused by exposure to wet and cold conditions over a prolonged time. If the temperature is below 60°F and the worker’s feet are constantly wet, trench foot is a legitimate concern. Symptoms include discoloration, numbness, lower-body cramps, swelling, blisters, and subdermal bleeding. 

To care for trench foot, remove the victim’s shoes and socks and dry their feet. Request medical attention. The victim should not try to walk, because walking can cause additional damage.

 

Provide heated break-spaces.

Taking breaks in heated areas and breaks for proper hydration are essential to winter safety. Encourage your employees to take time away from the elements. Breaks are also a convenient time to check for signs of cold-related illness.

To provide Your employees with a heated break area, check out these heaters. Make sure to properly vent the area and monitor for carbon monoxide exposure. Read our blog for more information on using heaters safely. 

 

Put emergency kits in work vehicles.

Make sure each of your work trucks and vehicles have winter weather kits. Kits should include water, nutritious snacks, blankets, a flashlight, an ice scraper/snow brush, and more. 

Now that you know the dangers of winter conditions & how to prepare for them, you will be better able to stay active and productive while keeping your employees safe in winter weather. For further preparation we recommend keeping an updated calendar and having a set breaking system to keep your employees safe.

Interested in learning more about keeping your team safe and your equipment in tip-top shape? Download our complete Winter Prep Guide! 

Want more winter weather tips and tricks? Check out our resources section! 

Editor’s Note: This post was originally published in February 2021. We updated it for freshness, accuracy, and comprehensiveness in January 2023. 

Is A Harness Required?

When are you required to use a harness? The short answer to this question is: it’s complicated. There are many variables that contribute to when a worker is required to wear a harness such as working heights, the type of equipment, job site conditions and company policies. However, a good starting point is to refer to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration’s requirements that state: 

General Industry requires fall protection for any worker over 4’. 1910.28(b)(1)(i)

Construction requires fall protection for any worker over 6’. 1926.501(b)(1)

Instances where the general height rules do not apply include when job sites are in/around certain safety hazards like dangerous equipment, machinery or hazardous materials into which workers could fall. In these situations, fall protection or authorized guarding is required regardless of the working height. 

James Lennartz, Training Manager at Hugg & Hall, recently spoke on the many considerations related to fall protection and when harnesses are and aren’t necessary. 

“When it comes to the requirements of wearing fall protection it depends on both the equipment and/or the local/state/employer requirements,” said Lennartz. “According to the ANSI Standard (ANSI/SAIA A92.22); the guardrail system of the Mobile Elevated Work Platform (MEWP) is the primary fall protection for occupants.”

“When required to use personal fall protection, either fall restraint or fall arrest, operators and occupants shall comply with the instructions provided by the manufacture regarding anchorage(s),” said Lennartz. “Basically, if the person is using a scissor lift (Group A) they are not required to wear a safety harness as the guardrail system is adequate enough to provide fall protection. Now, local/state or employer can require an operator to wear a safety harness. If the MEWP is a boom lift (Group B), then here it is. All group B MEWP operators and occupants shall use personal fall arrest or fall restraint systems at all times.” 

Specific rules may vary based on the companies and organizations involved as well as federal/state/local laws. Lennartz spoke on Hugg & Hall’s own policy regarding fall protection. 

“Our drivers are required to wear a harness when loading and unloading booms only. We also require the same of customers and other drivers when on our yards,” said Lennartz.

Exceptions

There are a few exceptions to the basic rules and workers/managers always need to be trained on and understand the organizational rules and federal/state/local laws governing their job site. Safety should always be the first priority and fall protection is an important and essential part of work site safety.