SUMMER SAFETY-100 DAYS OF SUMMER SHARE OF THE DAY

Summer Safety 2021

With temperatures on the rise and pandemic-related restrictions lifting across the United States, many Soldiers and their families will be enjoying recreational activities within their local areas and planning vacations just a road trip away. Summer, however, is the Army’s deadliest time of year for mishaps, so playing it safe is critical to having a good time.

The following content is designed to help your Soldiers, Civilian employees and family members mitigate risk during the spring and summer seasons. We’ll be adding content periodically through the next few months, so please check back often for updates. As always, the USACRC welcomes your feedback — let us know what you want to see.

Whatever your plans … Always have a plan!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Michael Negard
April 12, 2021 Telephone: [login to see]
[login to see]
https://safety.army.mil/
The heat is on: Army heat illness/summer safety campaign underway
JULIE SHELLEY
Communication and Public Affairs
U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center
FORT RUCKER, Ala. − Spring break, summer vacation, longer training days and permanent change of station moves — there’s a lot going on for Soldiers and their families between April and September.
Unfortunately, spring and summer (essentially the third and fourth quarters) are the deadliest time of year for Army mishaps, both on and off duty. The U.S. Army Combat Readiness Center released a seasonal communications campaign this week to heighten awareness of the hazards and help
leaders and Soldiers mitigate their risk, whatever their mission or personal plans.
“This campaign is a valuable addition to risk management toolkits for leaders, safety professionals and individual Soldiers,” said Brig. Gen. Andrew C. Hilmes, USACRC commanding general and director of Army Safety. “Between additional training time on duty and more leisure travel off duty, the
Army’s risk profile naturally rises with the temperature between winter, the start of spring and throughout summer.”
During the past two fiscal years, 91 Soldiers died in off-duty third- or fourth-quarter mishaps. An additional 21 Soldiers were killed in mishaps on duty.
“The vast majority of our fatal mishaps occur in vehicles, and that holds true on and off duty,” said USACRC Command Sgt. Maj. William L. Gardner II. “So that obviously requires a lot of focus, but we can’t forget about other hazards like heat illness for Soldiers working or training outside and
drownings off duty, which have increased the past few fiscal years.”
This year’s heat illness/summer safety campaign addresses these and other topics and is designed to complement the updated Off Duty Safety Awareness Presentation and first-ever third-quarter spike tactical vehicle safety campaign, both of which launched Army-wide in recent weeks.
“We really just want to hit all the areas where we typically lose Soldiers to mishaps, especially as pandemic-related restrictions ease across the country and we return to a more normal operating
posture,” Hilmes said. “These campaigns are our effort to make everyone aware of the hazards and enable informed decision-making regardless of activity. Getting back on track both professionally and personally from last year, our Soldiers and families will be busier than they’ve been in a long time.”The heat illness/summer safety campaign is available at https://safety.army.mil/summer-safety.
Additional materials, including content on the 101 Critical Days of Summer, will be added periodically to the campaign site through early September. The third-quarter spike tactical vehicle safety
campaign, ODSAP, and other risk management tools are available at https://safety.army.mil.