​ We are pleased to announce that this years Southern Oregon Safety Conference is scheduled as an online event and has an amazing lineup of nationally and internationally recognized presenters.
 
Starting our event, Corrie Pitzer, CEO of Safe Map International, will facilitate our Professional Development Workshop entitled, Deep Safe Leadership. Deep Safe Leadership is focused on leadership in the high-risk environment and translating those skills to leading when we cant promise a safe environment.
 
Opening keynote presentation will be delivered by Anil Mathur, former CEO of Alaska Tanker Co. and outgoing Public Director at ASSP. When Mathur took over the leadership of ATC, they were experiencing a time-loss injury every month and as they built up the safety systems and knowledge, they went over a dozen years with only one time-loss injury. Mathur stresses the importance of building trust with employees and teaching mindfulness.
 
Second day keynote will be delivered by Amy Harper, PhD, Senior Director of workplace training and consulting at the National Safety Council. Dr. Harper has worked in the field for more than 20 years as a consultant, trainer, strategist and marketer.
 
Our conference will also include our popular Safety Committee University and its five-session series as well as a special presentation by Bob Edwards on the value of Learning Teams. We have other terrific topics and presenters in various safety and leadership topics.
 
To wrap up our event, our very own Craig Hamelund will emcee our closing session and awards ceremony where we will present 5 different awards to well-deserved businesses and leaders.
 
To learn more about our event, download a flyer or award applications and watch for registration materials, visit our page at: www.soassp.org/conference
 
Sincerely,
Michael Hill, CSP
Conference Planning Chair

​On a recent family vacation, I drove south on I-5 and saw low lake levels and dry terrain all the way from Southern Oregon to central California. Then, this morning, I read that the Oregon Department of Forestry Southwest Oregon division announced that fire season will officially start Wednesday, May 12, 2021. The eastern valleys surrounding San Francisco were already in a Red Flag Warning this past weekend. Unfortunately, a drier than average winter, and ongoing drought has left us prime for another tough fire season. Because of this, it is a good time for us to prepare our homes, and our workplace, and review our wildfire emergency plans.
 
FEMA recommends the following protections for your home: Regularly clean roof and gutters; inspect chimneys twice a year; install a smoke alarm on each level of your home, especially near the bedrooms, and make sure you test the batteries monthly, and change at least annually; have an ABC fire extinguisher on hand and train every family member how to use it (PASS method); keep household tools like a rake, axe, chain saw, bucket and shovel on hand; have a ladder that can reach the roof. Create a 30-foot safety zone around your home by raking leaves, limbs and twigs and clearing flammable vegetation (remember to clean under structures like decks too). Remove dead tree branches that extend over the roof, and keep shrubs and branches at least 15 feet away from any stovepipes or chimney outlets. Remove any vines from the walls, and move the grass regularly. Keep a clear 10-foot area around propane tanks and barbecues.
 
For emergency preparation, keep a 72-hour survival kit on hand. I have one in every vehicle, and one in my office. Sign up for local emergency alerts in your area. You may also choose to use a scanner app and follow local emergency management agencies on social media. Make sure you understand the different levels of alerts & warnings. A Fire Weather Watch is issued by the National Weather Service when potentially dangerous fire weather conditions are possible in 12-72 hours. A Fire Weather / Red Flag Warning is issued when conditions currently exist and weather patterns support that wildfires are occurring or expected to occur within 24 hours.
 
During a fire event, a Level 1 is the first evacuation or protection Alert. This indicates a wildfire threat is in your area and be READY in the event an evacuation becomes necessary. Level 2 Evacuation Warning means there is a high probability of a need to evacuate, so be SET to evacuate. Level 3 Evacuation Order asks all occupants of the affected area to leave (GO) within a specified time period.
 
Now is the time for every company in a fire hazard region to complete training on Wildfire Safety to cover site specific plans.  It is also a best practice to monitor smoke conditions, and have a plan in place for how to protect workers when air quality decreases.
 
Thank you,

Loria Holden, CSP
Treasurer

​I am pleased to announce that we will be offering awards for awards for your safety committees and Safety leaders at virtual Safety Conference this October. Take a look at our website to download the applications:  Conference (soassp.org). Please have them completed and turned in by August 27th!
 
It is always a good reminder to make sure that we find time to recognize and show appreciation for our safety leaders. Safety Awards are one way that this can be accomplished.
 
We have a number of awards you and your organization can apply for. The Best of the Best Safety Committee award is highly sought after and the competition is fierce. The Lundberg award for outstanding safety and health program is a prestigious award based on the seven major elements of an effective occupational safety and health program. Don’t forget the new Safety Champion Award, that was first offered in 2019,and is a great way to recognize outstanding individual achievement on your safety committees. Because we know that the tone of safety always comes from the top, we have the Business Leader who gets it (BLWGI) Award. Unfortunately, we will not offer the Bertak award this year because the minimum requirements for safety committees were lifted last year. At this time, we do expect the important Bertak award to return.
 
On our awards website, take some time and click on the Frank Bertak and Randall Lundberg History’s to help us remember the efforts of these prominent Southern Oregon foundational safety professionals that made our Southern Oregon Occupational Safety Conference a success over the years.
 
David Hanson
Awards Chair