It’s National Burn Awareness Week
The American Burn Association (ABA) is dedicated to improving the lives of everyone affected by burn injury. Each year, the ABA recognizes the first week of February as National Burn Awareness Week; this year’s theme is “Hot Liquids Burn Like Fire!”
A burn is defined as damage to your body’s tissues caused by heat, chemicals, electricity, sunlight, or radiation. Scalds from hot liquids and steam, building fires, and flammable liquids and gases are the most common causes of burns.
There are three types of burns:
- First-degree burns damage only the outer layer of skin
- Second-degree burns damage the outer layer and the layer underneath
- Third-degree burns damage or destroy the deepest layer of skin and tissues underneath
NYCHA’s Environmental Health and Safety Department would like to share some recommendations on how to prevent burns in the workplace, especially for colleagues working in a heating plant:
*To help check surface temperatures, one suggestion is to use a remote reading infrared (IR) thermometer. If one is not available, assume that any un-insulated surface may be hot enough to cause burns.
Additionally, it’s recommended that anyone working on or near hot surfaces wear long-sleeve shirts.
How to treat a burn?
The United States Fire Administration and FEMA recommend the following:
- If someone is severely burned, call 911 right away.While you wait for help, begin these treatments:
- Treat a burn right away by putting it in cool Cool the burn for three to five minutes.
- Cover the burn with a clean, dry cloth. Do not apply creams, ointments, sprays, or other home remedies.
- Remove all clothing, jewelry, and metal from the burned area. These can hide underlying burns and retain heat, which can increase skin damage.
If you have questions about this or any environmental health and safety matter, contact ehs@nycha.nyc.gov.
For more information on burn awareness, please visit these resources recommended by the U.S Fire Administration:
