Image Credit: CFJC Today / Jill Sperling

By Jill Sperling

Smoke Safety

Outdoor workers in Kamloops tough it out in the smoke

Sep 15, 2020 | 4:52 PM

KAMLOOPS — It was another smoky day in Kamloops, but throughout the city, it was business as usual.

“As far as I know in Kamloops we’ve been working the whole time,” said Canada Post letter carrier Aaron Arseneau, “but I think the Lower Mainland and also Kelowna did not deliver yesterday.”

Canada Post had sent out a release Monday afternoon (Sep. 14) stating it had suspended delivery in several communities including Kamloops.

Arseneau says he continued to work, masking up to protect himself from the smoke.

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“It was just smoky, it was really really smoky,” he said. “Thanks to the mask I was able to breathe okay and work was fine for me. But it was definitely super noticeable, a lot more cloudy than today even.”

This afternoon (Sep. 15), Canada Post said Kamloops was among cities under a “Yellow Delivery” service alert. This means workers would be doing their best to deliver, but customers may experience delays.

Barry Nakahara, a senior manager with WorkSafeBC, says smoke can have varying impacts depending on a person’s overall health.

“People with underlying health risks, previous respiratory and cardiac problems might want to take a little more caution in working in these conditions,” Nakahara said. “Otherwise, this is a short duration, hopefully, and that risk for the average person should not be all that significant.”

Interior Health recommends working indoors if at all possible.

“If you have to work outdoors definitely consult with your employer and their safety guidelines in terms of working outdoors,” said Interior Health Medical Health Officer Dr. Carol Fenton. “The recommendation from BC CDC for working outdoors is to wear an N95 mask that’s properly fitted, so make sure you have that fit test with your employer. ”

People are also encouraged to avoid strenuous activities.

“When you’re working hard you’re breathing harder,” Nakahara said. “In fact you can be breathing up to 20 times more air volume than you normally would with more sedentary type work, so along with that comes just more smoke exposure. You’re just moving more air in and out of your lungs.”

For workers like Arseneau, there isn’t a way around the physical aspects of the job.

“I do close to 25 kilometres in a day,” he said, “so it’s definitely a pretty physical job. Luckily, I’m on the North Shore so it’s nice and flat, but yeah, it’s definitely strenuous.”

Kamloops is expected to experience periods of smoke through Friday.