Public health authorities confirmed the first case in the United States of a person infected with a novel coronavirus in Everett, Washington on January 21. The virus can be transmitted from person to person, and cases have been reported in several cities in China, as well as in a growing number of other countries.
Pure Safety Group (PSG) issued a product recall notice for Guardian Fall Protection and Web Devices 3-Way Rescue and Retrieval self-retracting lifeline and a stop-use notice for Guardian SRL-LEs with Stainless Steel or Web Lifelines. Any UW employee using either of these products should stop use immediately.
During periods of snowfall and potentially icy conditions, we remind you to use extra caution while walking on campus. Prevent slips, trips and falls when walking on campus by doing the following:
Following the announcement of the Seattle Police Department’s preventable fire alarm initiative (that will result in fines for false alarms starting January 1, 2020), EH&S has fielded concerns about whether a fire alarm should be trigged when a fire is not present.
On December 9, 2019, EH&S hosted the Laboratory Safety Awards & Innovation Event to share new practices developed to enhance the culture of safety in UW research and teaching labs. Executive Director of Health Sciences Administration, Dave Anderson gave the opening speech, and Katia Harb, Senior Director of EH&S, gave the closing remarks. Research leaders presented innovations instated in their labs and departments to improve safety practices and safety training completion.
Home Safe 4 the Holidays video from UW DEOHS Continuing Education Programs
As the end of the year quickly approaches, we are often preoccupied with holiday planning, year-end deadlines and work commitments. As a result, many employers see an increase in workplace injuries just before and after the holiday season.
EH&S reminds the UW community to be mindful and maintain your focus on safety at all times, especially during the holiday season.
Eliminate as many distractions as possible:
The University has over 950 active biosafety cabinets (BSCs), and about 150 have become obsolete due to safer design standards and the challenge of obtaining replacement parts. EH&S recommends replacing obsolete cabinets before they fail to minimize disruptions to research projects.
The following resources are available to assist with the purchase and replacement of BSCs:
New hazardous waste labels are available that are compliant with the new Hazardous Waste Generator Improvements Rule regulations. These new labels are larger but can be used alone without additional labels.
The new labels include the required larger typefaces and simplified options to indicate the primary hazard. The new hazard selection options include Flammable, Toxic, Corrosive and Reactive.
Seattle Fire Department’s (SFD) Fire Prevention Division is launching a new initiative in 2020 to avoid “false” or “preventable” alarms. For this reason, the City of Seattle is introducing citations of $373 or greater beginning January 1, 2020 for preventable alarms. As a result of this initiative, the availability of fire department resources to respond to true emergencies is expected to improve.
Preventable alarms include:
In June 2019, Washington State Department of Health (DOH) changed the regulations governing radiation machine facility fees. The changes impact the fees paid by the University for radiation producing devices on campus and may result in an increase in inspections.
