Allen Woffard, CSM, COSS, and a few other letters…
From 2017 through the start of the pandemic, I wasn’t responding to trends — I was responding to training requests after real events.
Some companies took the time to protect the physical welfare of their people.
Some didn’t.
Many genuinely believed hydration packs, Advil, and popsicles would keep workers safe from heat through over-hydration. Not because they were stupid — but because they were not properly trained or informed.
2017 wasn’t just a season of medical emergencies. It was a manic stretch of rescue responses involving welders, fitters, insulators, and others working 80 to 110 feet in the air on a variety of Aerial Work Platforms. Some rescues were successful. Some weren’t.
The majority of calls for assistance didn’t come from drills or near-misses.
They came after incidents — across construction and general industry.
Many occurred just before the August solar eclipse.
Coincidence? No. Just a fun fact.
These were the realities:
- Fingertip amputations
- Heart attacks
- Heat injuries
- Fall shock
- Struck-by incidents
- Trench collapses
Not tabletop exercises.
Not hypotheticals.
Real people. Real consequences.
Chemical & Manufacturing Facilities
The requests were repetitive and crystal clear:
Train our emergency response teams to act under pressure — not panic.
That included hands-on fire extinguisher training, because the first seconds of a fire often determine whether it’s an incident or a catastrophe.
And don’t get me started on the bullshit it took just to get hot-work permitting initiated and completed — after investigating nine fires in welding hooches… including one genius cooking a whole damn chicken inside a pipe while welding.
That’s a memory for another post.
One client stored highly flammable chemicals on site, but the SDS binder lived in the HR/EHS office — nowhere near where the materials were actually used. After six months of spills and exposure issues, I implemented online SDS access using Google Drive and QR codes.
Yes — it’s allowed under OSHA 1910.1200(g)(8).
Construction
The need was immediate and field-based:
- Heat-related emergencies
- Cardiac events
- Confined space rescue
- Stop the Bleed
- Fire extinguisher use in active work areas, not just classroom theory
General Industry & Service Trades
HVAC, plumbing, and maintenance crews faced different risks — but the impact was just as severe:
- Lone workers
- Delayed emergency response in remote areas
- First aid and fire response decisions made alone, often with no backup
What I Saw Repeatedly
Effective training isn’t about compliance.
It’s about confidence, capability, and readiness.
When people are properly trained:
- They slow down instead of freezing
- They communicate instead of guessing
- They act instead of waiting
And when leadership shows up — not just to approve training, but to participate, support, and reinforce it — everything changes.
Engagement changes.
Ownership changes.
Outcomes change.
This kind of training builds more than confidence.
It builds skill, ability, and credibility — from the field to the front office.
Emergencies don’t care what industry you’re in.
Preparation has to start top-down and stay boots-on-the-ground.
The Moral of This Memory
Many companies assume new personnel arrive fully trained — OSHA 10 or 30 completed, fluent in LOTO, CPR-certified annually, and forklift-certified since the invention of the wheel.
When reality hits and the toolbox talk fails to prepare workers for now, the response is predictable:
Scramble.
Cover.
Conceal.
“Re-educate” — just enough to satisfy the auditor.
Not for worker safety.
Not for confidence.
For compliance.
Shame. Shame.
Reflection
If an emergency happened on your site today…
would your team know what to do —
or just know where the binder is?
I worked in safety over 10 years. 8 yrs federalz had to do some fatality investigations. Those are never good. Are you looking for safety professionals?