Even in the northern state of New York, the summers can be blisteringly hot. Working outdoors in these conditions can be very dangerous if you do not take the time to rest, cool down, and rehydrate when you begin to feel overworked. Athletes, construction workers, and other outdoor laborers should be granted adequate time to replenish their bodies of lost water and minerals.
The Steps to Heat Stroke
Even though many heat-related illnesses are not dangerous themselves, they can develop into much more serious conditions when they are left untreated. Typically, heat illnesses arise in minor, uncomfortable forms such as heat rash and heat cramps. At their worst, however, they can turn into heat stroke, which is fatal if not immediately treated.
The symptoms leading up to heat stroke are the following:
- Heat Rash: Red, itchy skin that arises when sweat ducts become blocked or irritated
- Heat Cramps: Painful, cramping muscles that result when water and minerals lost through sweating are not replenished
- Heat Edema: Swelling of the legs and hands, resulting from dilated blood vessels
- Heat Exhaustion: Inability to adequately cool the body through sweating because lost water has not been replaced; signs include fatigue, weakness, dizziness, pale and cool skin, and a quick pulse
- Heat Stroke: Complete inability of the body to control its temperature, resulting in a significant increase of temperature; signs include confusion, convulsions, a hard and quick pulse, and hot, dry skin
If you work in a hot environment, it is your supervisor’s duty to allow you enough rest and rehydration time on the job so that you do not develop a dangerous heat-related illness like heatstroke.
Contact Us
If you have suffered a heat-related illness as the result of another party’s negligence, then you may have the right to claim compensation. Contact the New York City personal injury lawyers of Orlow, Orlow & Orlow, P.C.