WA FOR FOREST INDUSTRY THE WESTERN CANADIAN LUMBER WORKER NEW W.C.B. SAFETY REGULATIONS A number of new accident prevention regulations for the forest industry will go into effect May 1, according to an announcement by Workmen’s Compensation Board Chair- man, Cyril White, Q.C. Most far reaching changes involve the setting up of acci- dent prevention programs and the requirement for rollover protective structures on mobile equipment. Other changes have been made in night operations, boomboat operations and noise level requirements. The new regulations are a culmination of two year’s work by a joint management-labour- WCB advisory committee. It’s recommendations on revising the regulations were circulated among management and labour organizations and then discussed at public hearings in November of last year. Major change in accident prevention programs calls for coordination of programs by employers where the work areas of two or more em- ployers overlap. The principal contractor, or the owner, will be responsible for setting up a continuing accident prevention program in which all other employers must cooperate. Rollover protective equip- ment will be required on new mobile equipment. manu- factured after July 1 of this year, while owners of older equipment will have until July 1, 1975 to install protective structures. Mobile equipment affected by this new regulation in- cludes: crawler tractors, wheeled dozers, loaders and skidders, motor graders, self- propelled wheeled scrapers, and industrial tractors. Structures which are added to old equipment must be cap- able of supporting at least twice the weight of the prime mover and must be certified by the manufacturer, the modi- fication design agency or a registered professional engineer. Exempted from the equip- ment listed are units operated where no rollover hazard exists, and crawler tractors. which are fitted with side booms. Other new regulations on mobile equipment call for auxiliary steering and braking devices on vehicles which de- pend upon engine power for steering and braking, the use of safety glass in cab en- closures, and the use of safety belts on equipment fitted with rollover protection. New regulations on night logging specify the exact light- ing requirements for: grapple yarding and log sorting as well as for high lead yarding and hand stowing on water. They also set out for the first time the threshold limit values on noise exposure and provide a formula for calculating daily exposure to different noise levels. The section on impaired workers has been broadened to include not only impairment by alcohol, but impairment of any kind. The new regulations, in bright orange cover, were mailed in late April to all employers in the province. Copies of the new handbook are available to workmen without charge through their em- ployers or directly from the WCB. LOCAL Rayonier’s Mahatta River operation (left) and Wayne Sea- _man the IWA’s Safety Committee Chairman for 1972 (right) are shown being presented with the WCB’s 1971 Centennial 1-71’s 1971 Safety Committee Chairman at Safety Plaque by WCB Accident Prevention Officer Bill Hawkins. MAHATTA RIVER CREW WINS W.C.B. SAFETY AWARD Local 1-71 IWA members employed at MRayonier’s Mahatta River Logging opera- tion located on Northern Vancouver Island, marked 555 days without a lost-time injury on April 8, one of the best cur- rent safety records in the for- est industry. The camp, which employs 120 men, staged a general safety meeting to mark the outstanding achievement. For last year’s clear work record, the camp was awarded the Workmen’s Compensation Board’s 1971 Centennial Safety Plaque. This was presented by F. P. Hawkins, safety in- spector, and was accepted jointly by Don Beise, camp manager, and W. Seaman, union safety chairman. In addition to this major safety award, eight B.C. Safety Council departmental safety plaques were presented. SS a SSS eee ON THE LIGHTER SIDE The B.C. Interior sawmill machinery manufacturer was livid. “Jack,” he shouted, “you juggled the books and stole $8,000. You sold my new de- signs to a competitor for $20,- 000. You’ve been having an affair with my wife. ’m warn- ing you for the last time — if I catch you playing with my golf clubs again you’re fired!” z= . Ever since man made a down payment on his first cave, rent, hut or wigwam, he and his family have had to face the ever-present danger of fire. Despite modern methods of fir fighting and prevention, the smoldering cigarette, oily rag and electrical short still make a fire a constant threat to life and property. Historically, the best defense against fire has always been escape — simple, basic escape — triggered by history’s oldest alarm: the instinct for self-preservation. Yet today, because of the mushrooming of the high-rise building, the instinct for self-preservation can become — under certain circumstances — an instinct for self-destruction. Last year, according to the National Fire Pro- tection Association, there were 235 fires in the United States and Canada that killed three or more people. Seven conflagrations in the U.S. and two in Canada caused 10 or more deaths each. All of the ‘‘multiple- death” fires claimed a total of 1,116 lives. Tragic? Of course. But the greatest tragedy, authorities now reveal is the fact that most of the deaths and in- ae in high-rise fires could have been prevented — the victims hadn't tried to escape from the What? Stay put when a fire breaks out? This violates everything we’ve all been taught since our first school fire drill. When the fire alarm rings, you That rule still stands, of course — unless, the experts say, you happen to find yourself in a high- rise building. And more and more people are finding themselves in just such places today: families on vacation in high-rise hotels and motels, families apartment buildings, and ban in high-rise office buildings , While on business staying in the high-rise and motels. ckly get an inkling of just how dangerous a fire can be as soon as you hear the official either we "TO DO IN HIGH-RISE FIRES definition of a “‘high-rise.’”’ Here is the way experts at the recent International Conference on Fire Safety in High-Rise Buildings defined this new urban phenomenon: “A high-rise building is one in which emergency evacuation is not practical and in which fire must be fought internally because of height. The usual characteristics of such a building are: “Beyond the reach of fire department aerial equipment; aproses a potential for significant stack effect; an “Requires unreasonable evacuation time.” Beyond the reach of fire department aerial equipment simply means rescue ladders often can’t reach the fire floor. Poses a potential for significant stack effect means high-rises, because of their construction and height, can act like giant smokestacks under certain. conditions. Differences in air pressure outside, combined inside with sealed windows and open elevator shafts, stairwells and central air con- ditioning, will convert a high-rise building into a high-rise chimney — spewing deadly smoke and gases all the way to the top. Requires unreasonable evacuation time means, of course, just that. At the high-rise fire conference, sponsored by the General Services Administration, test results revealed that evacuation of an 11-story building may take as long as 642 minutes; an 18-story building, 712 minutes; a 20-story building, 18 minutes — and two hours and 11 minutes for a 50-story building. The problem of evacuation is compounded by fire fighters having to fight their way up through descending occupants to get to the fire itself. In the light of the above findings, it comes as less of a surprise to read this conclusion by the GSA, the federal government landlord: ‘‘. . . the concept of escaping the building in a fire emergency must be Scrapped and the people must be reeducated to accept the concept of staying in a safe place in the building.” High-rises usually have built-in features that make them less susceptible than private homes to a devastating fire. The fire-resistive construction used in these buildings minimizes the spread of fire, especially from floor to floor, while special water pipes make it possible to pump water quickly and efficiently, even to the highest floor. If it’s necessary to vacate your hotel room or apartment, avoid using elevators, since they have a way of playing tricks on people when smoke and ’ water are present. Sometimes smoke interferes with the elevator’s electric eye and the door won’t close. Other times, water from fire-fighting operations can short out the control switch of the elevator, causing it to stop. Heat, moreover, can activate some elevator call buttons and send an elevator to the fire floor — the last place in the world you want to visit. For these reasons, it’s best to use the stairway if you feel you must leave the building. Most newer buildings have enclosed stairways, also called fire towers, that provide a smoke-free exit — if they haven’t been invaded by the fire. But a very serious problem occurs when people prop or tie the stairwell doors open. If a fire did strike, smoke from the corridor would fill the open stairway, there- by cutting off your escape route. The Council em- phasizes that keeping fire towers closed off and free of clutter is one of the most important steps that high-rise tenants can take. When it comes to high-rise fires, perhaps the most important thing to realize is that there’s no reason for panic. To avoid panic, it will pay you and your family to familiarize yourselves with a list of simple precautions approved by the National Fire Protection Association, National Safety Council, Chicago Fire Department and other fire safety organizations. Know Your Building Learn the location of all exit stairways on your floor. Discuss in advance what you’ll do if the closest exit can’t be used in a fire emergency.