Garrison personnel turn out to learn winter safety at Ansbach

By USAG Ansbach Safety OfficeNovember 20, 2014

Briefing safety
1 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Fred Lane, right, hunting/fishing/sport-shooting manager for U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach, briefs an audience on outdoors safety during winter. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community g... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
AED
2 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Teams demonstrate the correct use of automated external defibrillators. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Center Nov. 14. (U.S. Army photo by Step... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Winterreifen
3 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Manfred Meyer, left, USAG Ansbach safety office, speaks on what constitutes a correct tire during the winter. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Ce... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Extinguishing the flame
4 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Soldiers practice correct fire extinguisher use. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Center Nov. 14. (U.S. Army photo by Stephen Baack, USAG Ansbach... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Suffocating the fire
5 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Soldiers demonstrate correct fire extinguisher use with the USAG Ansbach fire department. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Center Nov. 14. (U.S. ... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Lifesaving measures
6 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – USAG Ansbach employees learn to correctly use automated external defibrillators. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Center Nov. 14. (U.S. Army phot... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Outdoors safety
7 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – Fred Lane, right, hunting/fishing/sport-shooting manager for U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach, briefs an audience on outdoors safety during winter. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community g... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL
Vehicle inspection
8 / 8 Show Caption + Hide Caption – A driver receives a courtesy inspection of a vehicle. To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Center Nov. 14. (U.S. Army photo by Mr. Manfred Meyer, USA... (Photo Credit: U.S. Army) VIEW ORIGINAL

ANSBACH, Germany (Nov. 20, 2014) -- To take a refresher course on winter safety, about 250 members of the U.S. Army Garrison Ansbach community gathered at Katterbach Fitness Center Nov. 14.

The garrison's safety office hosted Winter Safety Day to help teach winter driving skills, winter vehicle legal requirements, automated external defibrillator use, skiing and hunting safety, proper nutrition and healthy lifestyles and fire safety.

"Safety is a critical issue for any organization, large or small. Keeping employees free from harm while on the job is both a moral and legal obligation," said Ta'Vares Hickey, safety specialist with the USAG Ansbach Safety Office.

"Safety days are a team efforts," said Manfred Meyer, USAG Ansbach safety specialist. "Our safety stand-down days rely exclusively on volunteer subject-matter experts presenting both timely and relevant information. We're lucky, we have installation agencies, host-nation safety and health agencies and private-sector firms in the Ansbach area who willingly lend their support."

Winter Safety Day was devoted to raising awareness of seasonal safety-related issues with the goal of preventing personal injuries and accidents, on and off-the-job. The event consisted of briefings, displays, hands-on training, and free vehicle inspections.

Attendees received winter driving training, which is an annual training requirement for operators of government motor vehicles, tactical and non-tactical.

"The majority of inclement weather accidents are caused by vehicle operators driving too fast for traffic and/or road conditions or following too closely," said EJ Singleton, USAG Ansbach safety manager.

"The speed limits on highways, roadways and the autobahn are for ideal traffic and road conditions," said Hickey. "Drivers must adjust their speed and following distances during inclement weather. In fact, when visibility is less than 50 meters (164 feet) drivers must not operate their vehicles faster than 50 kilometers per hour."

Outside, personnel received free, non-attribution, safety inspections of their vehicles' suspension systems, tires and brakes.

The training event was not just about driving.

Attendees visited a static display of office products and personal protective equipment.

The American Red Cross demonstrated how to use automated external defibrillators. Several garrison facilities and public places such as the Post Exchange and fitness centers have the life-saving devices installed.

"We recently deployed bilingual speaking AEDs in garrison workplaces where the majority of the workers are local nationals that are capable of rendering instructions in English or Deutsch," said Meyer.

Fred Lane, hunting, fishing and sport-shooting manager for USAG Ansbach, provided a safety briefing on hunting and skiing. He emphasized the need for non-hunters to stay out of hunting areas during German hunts ("Treibjagd" and "Drückjagd"), which begins mid-November and concludes mid-January. The areas are usually identified with some type of signage indicating the "Treibjagd" or "Drückjagd" is in process. Although hunters are required to wear orange vests to signal their presence, non-hunters are strongly advised to stay clear of hunting areas.

"Skiing and snowboarding are great sports, because they work the major muscle groups," said Fred Lane.

The trick to enjoying skiing or snowboarding is to take lessons and to know and respect your limitations, according to Lane. A common mistake novice and experience skiers and snowboarders make is to take unnecessary risk, which usually end badly.

"Whether you're a skier or snowboarder dress in layers, wear appropriate personal protective equipment, including a helmet, and make sure fittings and bindings are secure," said Lane. "Lastly, respect other skiers and snowboarders when on the trail."

Elizabeth Schuster-Shoaf, community health nurse with Katterbach Medical Clinic, provided a briefing on cold weather physiology and proper nutrition.

"The key to preventing cold weather injuries is to stay hydrated and to dress in layers," said Schuster-Shoaf. "Dressing in layers allows us to regulate our body temperature and to remain comfortable in the outdoors. It's a proven concept that works! The best part about dressing in layers is that it's easy to remove or add a layer when you're working outside, volksmarching, hitting the ski slopes.

"If you feel hungrier as winter draws near, you're not alone," continued Schuster-Shoaf. "Even though the majority of us spend our days in indoors at work and at home, our appetites seem to increase when the days grow shorter. To avoid putting on extra pounds during the winter, stick to a balanced diet of whole grains, lean protein, fresh fruits and vegetables to stay healthy."

The installation fire department provided hands-on fire extinguisher training. Sabine Searles, fire inspector for the garrison, said that during the holiday season USAG Ansbach experiences an increase in fires resulting from unattended cooking and burning candles. She reminded participants to stay in the kitchen when frying, grilling and broiling.

"Turn off the stove if you must leave, even for a short time," said Searle "because seconds quickly become minutes."

When simmering, baking and roasting stay in the home and use a timer to avoid burning your holiday meal.

"Burning candles are not authorized in the workplace," said Searles. "When burning candles in the home, use sturdy holders, such as metal, glass, or ceramic, that won't tip over easily. Keep candles at least 12 inches away from anything that can burn; place candles on a sturdy, uncluttered surface and always extinguish burning candles before you retire for the evening."

Winter brings a variety of challenges but risk management can help us successfully overcome most of the challenges to have a safe and enjoyable winter season, according to Singleton.

Related Links:

USAG Ansbach blog site

American Red Cross at USAG Ansbach

Driving Safe in Winter

USAG Ansbach Inclement Weather page

USAG Ansbach home page

USAG Ansbach Safety Office

Franconian News page

USAG Ansbach Flickr page

USAG Ansbach Twitter feed

USAG Ansbach Facebook page

USAG Ansbach Youtube channel