With extreme weather affecting communities across the country, producers are reminded to review and follow the industry’s recommended safety guidance for working in extreme heat and inclement or severe weather. Whether a production is filming outdoors in high temperatures, working indoors in a hot environment, or facing thunderstorms, high winds, flash flooding, or other severe conditions, advance planning and appropriate safety precautions are essential to protecting cast and crew.
Contract Services Administration Trust Fund (“Contract Services” or “CSATF”) makes several resources available through the Industry Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee, including:
Safety Bulletin #35: Safety Considerations for the Prevention of Outdoor Heat Illness;
Safety & Health Awareness Sheet on Indoor Heat Illness Prevention in California; and
Safety Bulletin #38: Guidelines for Inclement or Severe Weather.
Producers and production teams should review these materials when planning locations, preparing for changing weather conditions, and conducting on-set safety meetings.
Preventing Heat Illness — Outdoors and Indoors
Safety Bulletin #35 emphasizes that heat illness can be life-threatening and that employees may be at risk even when they have previously acclimatized to working in hot conditions. Productions should monitor weather conditions, ensure that drinking water is readily available, provide appropriate shaded areas, and allow and encourage employees to take preventative cool-down rests when needed. When temperatures reach or exceed 95°F, the bulletin calls for additional precautions, including pre-shift safety meetings, effective observation of employees for signs of heat illness, and reminders to drink water throughout the shift.
Click here to read Safety Bulletin #35 regarding Outdoor Heat Illness.
The accompanying Indoor Heat Illness Prevention guidance addresses California productions subject to the state’s indoor heat illness standard. Under the guidance, the standard applies when indoor temperatures reach or exceed 82°F while employees are present. Requirements include access to drinking water and cool-down areas, effective emergency response procedures, acclimatization processes, employee and supervisor training, and implementation of a written Indoor Heat Illness Prevention Plan. Additional assessment and control measures apply at specified higher temperatures and under certain working conditions.
Click here to read the Indoor Heat Illness Awareness Sheet.
Producers and supervisors should ensure that employees recognize potential symptoms of heat illness, including headache, fatigue, dizziness, nausea, confusion, muscle cramps, loss of coordination, and altered behavior. Employees should promptly report symptoms they experience or observe in others. A suspected heat-related emergency requires immediate action; contact the set medic, if available, or call 911.
Planning for Inclement or Severe Weather
Safety Bulletin #38 addresses outdoor production in areas where thunderstorms, flash flooding, extreme winds, large hail, tornadoes, hurricanes, and other severe weather may pose a risk. It emphasizes the importance of developing a site-specific action plan before filming in potentially hazardous locations.
Click here to read Safety Bulletin #38 regarding Inclement Weather.
The plan should identify who is responsible for monitoring weather conditions, establish reliable methods for receiving forecasts and warnings, and explain how instructions will be communicated to cast and crew. It should also address evacuation routes, designated shelters and meeting areas, head counts, emergency procedures, and the safe shutdown, securing, or removal of equipment when necessary. When inclement or severe weather is possible, the bulletin calls for a safety meeting to review the action plan and communicate relevant risks and procedures.
Producers should pay particular attention to the hazards associated with specific conditions. Flooding can occur even when it is not raining at the production location; crew members should never drive through moving water or flooded roadways. High winds can overturn equipment, create flying debris, and endanger personnel working at elevated heights. When severe weather threatens, productions should follow their established action plans, seek designated shelter or evacuate as appropriate, and not resume activities until an all-clear signal has been given by a regulatory authority or Production Management.
Review the Bulletins Before Your Next Shoot
Weather conditions can change quickly, and a location that appears safe at the start of the day may present different risks as conditions develop. Producers should incorporate weather monitoring and safety planning into their production preparations, ensure that supervisors and crew understand the applicable procedures, and comply with all laws and regulations in the jurisdiction where the production takes place.
The bulletins and additional safety resources are available at Contract Services’ website. These materials provide recommended guidelines and do not replace applicable legal and regulatory requirements. Producers should consult the rules and regulations that apply to each production location.
Taking time to plan for extreme weather, communicate hazards, and follow established safety procedures helps protect everyone working on a production.