As a VPP worksite and a safety advisor we made the difficult choice to cancel our trip due to this year’s VPPPA Safety and Health Conference due to potential travel and stranding risks the storm could pose to our employees. We were happy to see that Hurricane Harvey avoided New Orleans, and hope all attendees gained valuable information at the conference and a sense of urgency that a safety risk like this one brings to the forefront.
Last year there were 91 natural disasters in the U.S. alone, tied for the second-highest on record, and 2017 could rival that. This is a good opportunity to review your environmental health and safety program and determine whether you have safety measures in place, not only to address day-to-day hazards, but to contend with the unexpected.
We keep everyone who was affected by Hurricane Harvey in our thoughts, and as a VPP community member made a donation to the American Red Cross to assist in recovery efforts.