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MEMBERS PRESENT: Katrina Doolittle, Linda Perez, David Shearer,
Jacki Griffin, Tom Reichardt, Jose Gamon, Leigh DeRoos and Alex
Barreras
GUESTS: Derrik Wootton, Barbara Hunter, Clint Loest, Gregory
Block, Kristen Grow
The regular Safety Committee Meeting was called to order at 3:45 P.M.
by Katrina Doolittle, Chair. The minutes of the previous meeting were
unanimously approved. Katrina announced that the meeting would be
oriented to presentations and discussion. The goal is to highlight
successful Departmental safety programs implemented at NMSU.
Departmental safety folks throughout the campus were invited to attend.
OLD BUSINESS:
1. Fall Safety Events
a. Katrina Doolittle discussed the building fire drills and
evacuation that took place on September 7-9, 2004. Garcia Annex,
Goddard Hall, Business Complex and NMDA were evacuated in about three
minutes from the initial alarm or telephone notice. NMDA was
evacuated using only the first Alert Telephone System and it went well.
b. The Facility Safety Fair was a big success. It was
located on the intramural field in close proximity to OFS and Housing
Warehouse. There was a good turnout of facilities personnel and safety
folks from all over campus. The vendors were satisfied and everyone
liked the location.
NEW BUSINESS:
1. Recognition of Safety Excellence
Katrina presented Jose Gamon with a certificate and
recognized his outstanding support of campus safety. Jose coordinated the facilities Safety Fair for the third year
and it just continues to improve every year.
2 Nutrition Lab Safety presentation by Clint Loest, Animal &
Range Sciences
a. Dr. Loest presented Animal & Range Sciences
safety regulations and standard procedures that he implemented in the Nutrition lab which is used as a core facility for the
department. Clint Loest shared information on the lab as he found it when he came to work at NMSU in 2001and how much it has
improved. He has enforced safety training for personal
working in the lab and special fees to ensure that folks clean up after
they work in the area. The Department has agreed to a $50 per
hour fee, up to $200, charged to the user if Nutrition lab technicians
have to clean up the lab The funds generated from these fees
are used to support Nutrition lab operations. It has taken two years
to get the process in place and he hopes that it continues
to improve.
b. Committee members commented positively on the
proactive efforts and were particularly interested in the creative enforcement strategy involving lab clean up fees.
3. Annual Safety Seminar overview presentation by Linda Perez,
Biology
a. Ms. Perez distributed a copy of the safety
presentation provided to the Biology department. She conducts this training annually and the Department Head makes it mandatory
for all employees. The annual training meets OSHA’s requirement for refresher safety training for laboratories. Linda
stated that the department received a citation from OSHA prior to her arrival and she includes this information as well as
other incidents that should be prevented.
b. Katrina recognized Linda Perez for instituting
the first formal safety training at NMSU.
4. “Wellness Wednesday” Health & Safety Fair brief by
Katrina Doolittle, EH&S
a. Katrina stated that “Wellness Wednesday” is being
coordinated by Lori McKee, Student Health Center, and will be held in Corbett Center on December 1, 2004. This Health
& Safety Fair is to improve knowledge of wellness opportunities that are available with the University and the Las Cruces
community. There will be 500 t-shirts given away and a
campus walk that is scheduled during the lunch hour. They are
expecting a larger number of vendors including actual
nutrition evaluations and health screening.
5. Hand Washing for Life presented by Kristen Grow '
a. Kristen is a senior in Health Sciences conducting an
internship with EH&S. Kristin developed a large poster display and a demonstration and video to promote
hand washing as the number
one method to prevent illness. She stated that washing your
hands frequently is extremely important because of the microorganisms
and viruses that we can transmit to ourselves and others.
She stated that a more expanded version of this display will be used
at the upcoming Wellness Fair.
Old Business:
1. Emergency Notification System brief update by Katrina
Doolittle
a. Katrina distributed a Central Administration Response
Team (C.A.R.T). Activation Flowchart and described the University procedure that would activate the CART. She also provided
an overview of the existing Emergency Notification
System stating that the telephone network has limitations; it takes 1
hour and 20 minutes to call over 7000 campus phones. In some
instances, it would be very important to get information out to the
community faster. Katrina stated that they will try to
reimplement complementary systems to augment the phone notification.
These elementary systems could include a radio based
system, outdoor speakers or possibly indoor PA systems. This effort is
continuing and Environmental Health & Safety, Police, Fire
and ICT are involved.
Other Business:
1. Safety Incidents/Issues:
a. Linda Perez s describe a recent situation involving
students on a field trip that had taken two University vans. The vans became separated and radio communications were not effective. The
Sheriffs Department and the Biology Department Head were informed
and involved in the search. It turned out that the vans were located
close to each other but could not connect visually either. The
Biology Department has developed very detailed procedures to ensure all
field trips have specific lists of participants with
emergency contacts, routes and maps, assembling locations, additional
means of communication, extra supplies. This is a
unique “safety” opportunity for Departments that conduct field work or
remote instruction activities..
b. Jose Gamon asked if bicycles were allowed on sidewalks
and Katrina stated that they are permitted as long as they are
being careful around pedestrians. Jose mentioned that the new scooters
and other types of motorized devices may pose safety concerns
for the walkways. Katrina stated that the Police Department noted that
scooters of the low range horsepower are exempt from vehicle
rules and regulations, however, the University may institute a policy
if needed.
There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned at 5:00 P.M.
The Safety Committee will meet Wednesday, February 23, 2005 in Genesis
B, Room 102, Safety Training Facility, from 3:30 pm - 5:00 pm.
Copies sent to
Abernethy, Michael
Long, Richard
Barreras, Alex
Marrujo, Jaime
Block, Greg
Parten, Douglas
Cabot, Louis
Pennise, Chris
Fedak, Joe
Perez, Linda
Leigh LeRoos
Reichardt, Thomas
Barreras, Alex
Rhodes, Robert
Gamon, Jose
Smith, Darrell
Griffin, Jacki
Woods, Benjamin
Hills, Richard
EH&S Staff
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