Emergency Response Workers
Although rewarding and challenging, emergency response workers have a tremendously stressful job that requires long hours and exposure to human suffering. ERWs are exposed to many hazards, including immediate dangers, such as falls, burns, cuts, dehydration and exhaustion, as well as long term health risks from asbestos and toxic substances.
After natural disasters, response and recovery workers face challenges, such as downed power lines, downed trees and high volumes of construction debris. Clean-up and restoration work is generally the most hazardous, especially when flooding is involved.