The city of Phoenix recently approved an ordinance to amend how to respond to heat-related injuries and illnesses. The newest updates come as workers from Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport aired their grievances about working under the sun during a city council meeting.
Several people attended the meeting to share their concerns related to working in the heat. They complained about not having air conditioning in vehicles and facing retaliation for bringing up the heat issues.
Worker Trina David says the intense weather is a major problem.
“We don't have access to available shade because we need to park these airplanes and get you guys off where you need to be as soon as possible. So the heat crisis is real. Dry heat is real. It is a convection oven,” she said.
City of Phoenix Aviation Director Chad Makovsky says measures would be taken to ensure air conditioning blows in vehicles.
In a statement to KJZZ News, an airport spokesperson said it appreciated the city council’s action to enhance the ordinance and make it easier for employees to report issues.
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The climate and sustainability program at Discovery Partners Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign wants to find ways to get people heat information that is more specific to particular locations at particular times, rather than a static kind of map. -
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The National Weather Service has issued another extreme heat warning for the Phoenix area. This one is in effect Tuesday through Thursday. -
Learning declines as students suffer mentally and physically in hot environments.
