QUINCY, Fla. (WTXL) — “I can say it is extremely hot at this point in time,” says Assistant Chief of Police Smith.
With temperatures rising to triple digits Florida is in for a hot summer. Though this may be a plus for some people outdoor workers have to take extreme precautions to prevent, dehydration, dizziness and most importantly burnout.
Gadsden County Director of Operations Curtis Young has worked in Public Works for 30 years. He says they have made accommodations to help combat the heat for the safety of his employees.
“It’s getting extremely hot and what we have been doing is every two hours we give our guys a 15-minute break. If it gets too hot, we’re pulling our guys off of the road and bringing them inside,” says Young.
The one thing he wants the public to do is show a little grace with outdoor workers.
“We want them to be patient with us. We’re out here to do a service for the citizens but we also want to do it in a safe environment,” says Young.
Assistant Chief Leroy Smith has been working in law enforcement for over 20 years in Florida. Though he is not new to the extreme temperatures he still encourages officers to take preventive measures.
“We’ve also informed our officers to stay hydrated. Try to drink at least 8 ounces of water an hour. We inform them to try and keep a cooler in their patrol vehicles, to freeze a plastic bottle of water and put them in their patrol car so that later those frozen bottles of water will become a cool cup of water for our officers,” says Smith.
