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Minutes 09-14-10 MINUTES OF THE SAFETY COMMITTEE MEETING HELD ON TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 2010 AT 9 A.M. IN CITY HALL CONFERENCE ROOM B, BOYNTON BEACH, FLORIDA PRESENT: Mark Bobich, Chair Aleksey Sev Maibet Rosado Samantha Powers Barbara Scott Warren Bazemore Jody Rivers Chuck Magazine Steve Evans Safety Administrator FinancelWarehouse Human Resources ITS/GIS Police/Code Compliance Public Works Recreation & Parks Risk Management Utilities ABSENT: Ray Altman, Vice-Chair Catherine Cherry-Guberman, Secretary Pam Welsh/Carisse Lejeune Michael Rumpf Jeremy Davis/Eric Falstad Michael Naughton/Karen Abramson Fire Rescue City Clerk City Manager Development Golf Course Library I. Call to Order The meeting was called to order at 9:00 a.m. II. Roll Call Mr. Magazine called the roll. A quorum was present. III. Acceptance of Minutes of 8/10/2010 regular meeting Motion Ms. Rivers moved to approve the minutes as presented. Ms. Scott seconded the motion that unanimously passed. IV. Safety Committee Education & Training A safety video was viewed detailing the hazards of working unprepared in heat and humidity. The video detailed how working in these conditions can affect accuracy, weaken comprehensive and retention. Hard work becomes more difficult, strength declines and fatigue becomes a problem. It promotes accidents. 1 Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Boynton Beach, Florida September 14,2010 It is important to use good judgment and take the precautions associated with heat stress. Be professional and have the information available. Heat stroke is a most serious condition that can arise anywhere. In this state the victim's skin is red or spotted, hot and dry. Sweating stops. Victims can become delirious, confused, in convulsions or unconscious. Death can occur unless timely treatment is received. Always call an ambulance. Remove the victim to a cooler location and soak their clothing with cool water. Fan the victim. Heat exhaustion is caused by the loss of fluid and sweating, sometimes by the loss of salt, or both. The victim experiences fatigue, nausea or headache. If they faint, move them to a cooler area and lay the person down. After gaining consciousness, move the victim around to encourage circulation. Awareness of what could happen and taking preventative measures could help. Try to drink as much water as is lost and use common sense. V. Old Business A. Fire Drills None. B. Proud to be a Safe Worker Awards The Utilities Department had three awards: On June 5, 2010, Gary Ezell was leaving work and he noticed a plume of water shooting over the C-16 canal. He notified Water Distribution. A valve on the force main, which carries sewage, had malfunctioned carrying raw sewage into the canal. The valve was quickly closed avoiding an environmental event. Due to Mr. Ezell's action, the spill was minimized and bacteria levels returned to normal after two days of testing. The East Water Treatment Plan was undergoing an upgrade to its disinfection system, involving installation of a chlorine on-site generator system. It requires the draining of caustic soda. The contractor did not have anyone on-site certified to handle chemical disposals. Devin Miller and Duron Millines assumed the responsibility of draining and neutralizing the caustic soda. They completed the task efficiently, avoiding the need to recruit a contractor to dispose of the chemical at a cost to the City. C. Departmental Inspections & Safety Meetings Chair Bobich appreciated receiving the information electronically and reminded the members to check the share drive to ensure proper credit was given. 2 Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Boynton Beach, Florida September 14, 2010 D. Incident Review Board Referrals None. E. Electrical Flame Resistant Uniforms & PPE Update - TABLED One meeting was held and other suggestions were received from Mr. Bazemore about vests and other equipment that should be included in the Personnel Protective Equipment Policy. Chair Bobich anticipated one more meeting would take place and then the revised policy would be reviewed by the Safety Committee for input. F. Drug Free Policy Statement (HR - Maibet Rosado) Ms. Rosado explained she was working on the item. Mr. Magazine explained the City does not receive a premium discount; however, depending on the claims activity, they utilize the Drug Free Policy program in the operation of their work program. There was a Florida Statute that addressed the Drug Free Policy. While the statute changed, the City's policy did not. Accordingly, the current language needs to be incorporated into the City's Policy. Ms. Rosado explained she was working on it. Mr. Magazine recommended referencing the Statute as an attachment as opposed to including it in the policy. This way as the Statute changed, only the attachment had to be changed. The policy would reviewed by the Legal Department. VI. New Business A. Departmental Safety Issues Ms. Rivers had comments about crowd control, PAL Football, RIP currents and general misbehavior at the beach. She was surprised no comments were made about physical or personal safety issues. Ms. Rivers agreed to scan those comments to Chair Bobich. Discussion followed about written rules at the beach and how effective the Recreation and Parks Department was in enforcing them. Ms. Rivers responded issues did not occur often but when they did, they call Ocean Ridge. Mr. Magazine was concerned with the PAL program. Ms. Rivers noted the police were present at those functions. B. Claims Cost Analysis Mr. Magazine explained the Risk Management department has been directed by the Budget Review Committee to initiate a cost allocation program next year. The self- insurance fund has in the past taken a lump sum from the general fund into the self- insurance fund. The cost will be allocated from each department's budget into the self- insurance fund. The allocation will be based on claims activity for each department. The departments will be charged for liability, auto, property and Worker's Compensation. They will go back three or five years to determine what the allocation 3 Meeting Minutes Safety Committee Boynton Beach, Florida September 14,2010 will be. He requested the members go back to the Department Heads and explain they would need to budget for it. Risk Management will work with each department individually to reduce claims. Risk Management can provide support and training. He pointed out going to the hospital as opposed to an urgent care facility is 3 to 4 times as costly. If someone was injured, report it. If they are not injured immediately, report it anyway. A record only report could be made. This year's budget for insurance was $2.3 million. Next year's budget would be worse. Each department would receive information about its allocation in April. The formula for the cost was based on the risk and the claims. Each department would have a minimal charge for property. It was necessary to reduce the claims activity and build up a reserve. Mr. Magazine explained currently there were no reserves in the insurance fund. Chair Bobich explained compared to the County and the State, the City does very well with its claims. C. Other None. VII. Announcements The Safety Shoe program starts October 1, 2010. Staff would set up times and dates. The two locations would be the Warehouse and the East Water Treatment Plant. VIII. Next Meeting Date: Tuesday, October 12, 2010, 9:00 a.m. VIII. Adjournment Mr. Magazine moved to adjourn. Ms. Rosado seconded the motion. The motion passed. The meeting adjourned at approximately 10:30 a.m. (! 0:iIwu~ GJwJ) Catherine Cherry r Recording Secretary 100510 4