Safety Risks of Reconstruction Workers in Clean-Up and Recovery Phase due to Natural Hazards

Build Back Safely: Evaluating the Occupational Health and Safety in Post-Disaster Reconstruction

“…Unique site conditions, particularly during the initial disaster response, relief and early reconstruction stages, creates environments where workers are exposed to multiple hazards that can be atypical to conventional construction work [60]. During debris removal, demolition and other early recovery activities, workers are exposed to contaminated environments and hazardous areas, where their physical health is at risk due to possible cuts, amputations, fractures and being trapped under rubble [11,40,42,51,60].…”

“…Disasters can increase the chance of psychological disorders, such as depression, panic disorder and anxiety, among workers. First respondents, such as firefighters and health care workers, are observed as vulnerable staff with a prevalence of probable PTSD and depression due to experiences related to lack of rest, dead or missing family members and near-death experiences [59,60]. Furthermore, construction workers in conventional sites have experienced suicidal behaviours triggered by stress, fatigue, low morale, financial crisis and PTSD and are two and a half times more likely to commit suicide compared with other professionals [68].…”

“…Managers make humanitarian workers aware of risks and protect them from exposure to unnecessary threats to their physical and emotional health". However, the limited workforce availability and organisational pressures often lead to the spontaneous engagement of volunteers, local communities, imported and culturally diverse workers, and other people with limited skills [46,48,50,52,58,60]. Pamidimukkala, Kermanshachi & Jahan Nipa [60] refer to three categories of construction workers: unskilled workers, semi-skilled workers and skilled workers.…”

“…However, the limited workforce availability and organisational pressures often lead to the spontaneous engagement of volunteers, local communities, imported and culturally diverse workers, and other people with limited skills [46,48,50,52,58,60]. Pamidimukkala, Kermanshachi & Jahan Nipa [60] refer to three categories of construction workers: unskilled workers, semi-skilled workers and skilled workers. The different skill levels among workers might determine their awareness of the risks, knowledge and decision-making capacities.…”

Development of system-based digital decision support (“Pocket Ark”) for post-flood enhanced response coordination and worker safety: an Intervention Mapping approach

“…In the aftermath of these events, construction workers traveling to rebuild these communities may face numerous hazards and receive the most intense exposures (5). The term reconstruction worker applies to a construction worker who is involved in the process of rebuilding structures destroyed due to extreme weather events (6,7). There are numerous hazards associated with reconstruction, including waterborne infectious diseases (8,9), respiratory irritants (removing sheetrock) and allergens (excessive mold growth) (10,11), and mental health exacerbations (12).…”