JOINT BASE LANGLEY EUSTIS, Va. –
As Joint Base Langley-Eustis members enjoy the summer activities that arise between Memorial Day and Labor Day, they may also run into risks associated with them that can be mitigated.
To assist Service members in making good decisions at work and at play, the JBLE safety office urges Service members to use tools developed by the U.S. Army, U.S. Air Force and Air Combat Command that help ensure safety, said U.S. Air Force Master Sgt. Justin Ulmen, 633rd Air Base Wing Safety Office superintendent.
Quest for Zero campaign
To ensure such risks are avoided, the office is advocating the Air Force's Quest for Zero campaign. The campaign aims to pinpoint hazards Service members face every day by highlighting on-duty risks in one career field each month.
Throughout the Critical Days of Summer, the offices highlighted are: Environmental offices in June, intelligence offices in July, and command and control systems and aircrew operations in August.
Safety Equation
The Safety office is also promoting the U.S. Army's Safety Equation campaign, which focuses on prevention methods for off-duty accidents by applying training, standards and discipline to decisions.
According to the U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center, risk is an inherent obstacle that can be mitigated through proper training, adhering to the prescribed standards and performing all activities in a disciplined manner. Following the equation of applying training, standards and discipline can help people identify hazards, manage risks, and prevent avoidable accidents. To the center, the most crucial of these factors is discipline as it takes a good attitude and behavior to accomplish proper discipline.
GPS-Check 3
Along with the safety equation, the JBLE safety office is focusing on ACC's "GPS-Check 3." The initiative focuses on off-duty risk management by highlighting three areas to assess before taking part in activities.
The three areas are:
Gear: Research and collect necessary equipment to safely participate in an activity, and ensure the equipment is up to safety standards and replaced when needed.
Plan: Research and anticipate logistics of activities and events, and complete an Air Force Form 4392.
Skill: Understand and acquire the skill level needed to safely participate. This includes ensuring proper rest is taken.
"Ask yourself, 'do I have the required training and skill to accomplish this safely?' If not maybe the risk you take isn't worth it," said Ulmen. "Bottom-line, know the risk associated."
Local risks
According to the safety office, the most prominent local risks involve driving safety.
"Local risks people can avoid or mitigate are traffic as there are many tourists in the area this time of year, driving under the influence and texting while driving or distracted driving," said Derrick Whitaker, 633rd ABW Safety Office safety technician. "I have seen countless people texting in heavy traffic areas. It is all of our responsibility to spread awareness of defensive driving, and to just stop texting and driving."
Another area of focus, due to mishaps last year, is cooking and grill safety, added Whitaker.
"Individuals should check their equipment before they start grilling anything, that way if anything does happen due to human error, the situation isn't worsened by faulty equipment," he said.
As the temperatures rise throughout the summer months, the safety office also emphasizes the importance of hydration in avoiding heating injuries. With "GPS-Check 3" in mind, the office also urges people to avoid rushing as it often leads to errors that heighten risks.
"Safety is the key goal and most of the time incidents are caused by people rushing and doing things last minute," said Whitaker. "If we just take our time we can eliminate a lot of the risks."
For more information on U.S Army and Air Force risk mitigation visit,
http://www.afsec.af.mil/ or https://safety.army.mil/.