Study suggests on-site rescue personnel needed

Many employers are mistakenly relying upon public fire departments to rescue workers from confined spaces, such as water and sewer pipes, manholes and tunnels, according to an analysis by University of California, Berkeley, health researchers of hundreds of deaths in the United States over 13 years.

Since fire crews need time to evaluate the hazards at a specific site, companies should instead have rescue personnel stationed at the entrance of potentially dangerous confined spaces who can pull workers out more quickly in an emergency, the study concludes.

http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2012/02/13/confined-spaces/

[Added note: Study published in Journal of Occupational and Environmental Hygiene, available to AIHA members].

Canadian asbestos study criticized

A major 40-year study on asbestos safety completed by a group of scientists at McGill University is flawed, lacks transparency and contains manipulated data says Dr. David Egilman, a professor at Brown University, health activist and longtime industry critic. (.....more)

http://www.cbc.ca/news/health/story/2012/02/01/asbestos-study-mcgill.html

Drake Hall update

Inspection of Drake Hall following the January 29th fire that forced the evacuation of all residents has revealed that damage repair will take 2-3 months. Consequently, all Drake Hall residents will need to relocate for the remainder of the spring semester. UW-La Crosse hopes to see Drake Hall ready for re-occupancy in early June.

As of Monday morning, 132 Drake Hall residents had officially checked out of their rooms. Many other rooms are cleared of possessions except for a few items, and not officially cleared for checked out. Students have accepted housing assignments in other residence halls, the Western Residence Hall and Viterbo University. Others have moved to apartments, hotels or will commute from home.

Further updates from UW-La Crosse are here.