Public safety and those who work outside in the heat

Public safety and those who work outside in the heat

We are we are always trying to figure out how to stay cool during the summer.

That's easier said than done for first responders, road workers, even postal carriers.

Storm team 10's david siple takes a good look on how the heat impacts those that make our lives safer.

Stand u} staying cool while we work can be taken for granted.

However, many work in conditions that are less than ideal during the hot summer.

From patrolling the streets, to fixing the streets, and rushing to your aid, our public safety and public works are in the heat for you.

V} firefighters for example put on roughly 80 pounds of turnout gear when responding to a fire alarm.

That turnout gear includes, a helmet, a nomex hood, leather or rubber bunker boots, vapor and heat barrier pants, turnout coats, 4-layer leather fire resistant gloves, and an s-c-b-a which weighs 40 pounds including a face piece.

Sob& i decided to gear up at my local fire department to see what they go through on a daily basis.

I was able to do a few drills including pulling a fire rescue mannequin, climb a ladder, water the grass and parking lot, and threw in a few jumping jacks.

Standu} so, temperatures are in the mid 80s right now and i can tell you i am very hot inside all of this after doing all of that work.

V} we took thermal images before i did the drills and took one after.

You can see beforehand without the gear; my body was fairly gray which meant it was normal.

After the drills in full gear, you can see my chest was more white indicating my body was giving off more heat.

Standu} add in a burning house, which reach temperatures of 1,000 degrees inside, to the summertime heat, and you could easily be overcome by heat exhaustion.

V} heat exhaustion can occur with any outdoor work environment.

This includes all of our postal workers, lineman, and public safety to name a few.

Road workers have specific guidelines to keep an eye out for each other and to always be sure to stay hydrated.

Standu} so how can you help our outdoor workers?

Donating water bottles to fire and police stations, work crews, and even leaving a cooler with bottled water on your porch for your postal worker can go a long way.

Help show your support by keeping them hydrated and cooled off during these hot summer months.

On my front porch, i'm storm team 10 meteorologist david siple.

Back to you.