We had some pretty wild weather today. And for some, “wild” is an understatement. As we head into the depths of Winter we had a very strong storm move down from the north bringing heavy rain, snow and extremely strong winds gusting over 100mph. Not only that, storm surges threatened the whole of the east coast of the country. Unfortunately, one man died in his HGV in Scotland after it overturned – highlighting the dangers that this sort of weather brings. And this point leads me on to the real reason for this post: safety.
Whilst we all try and get on with the week’s fitting as efficiently as possible, the weather does sometimes hold us up. Whilst most fitters will try and work through whatever conditions are thrown at them, there are some occasions where safe work simply cannot happen, and today was one of those days. 116mph gusts were recorded in Scotland, and many parts of West Yorkshire, where I work, recorded winds easily over 70mph. It doesn’t take a genius to understand that any sort of work from ladders or glazing work with large units simply is not safe.
All fitting was called off today where I work. We weren’t going to risk anybody’s safety for the sake of new windows and doors. It proved to be a little tricky as we are fully booked up until Christmas, which has meant one or two jobs might have to be put back to January next year. Which in itself isn’t easy as we already have worked booked in for January. But that was the situation at hand and we had to come to some sort of solution.
When weather is as treacherous as this, I sincerely hope that double glazing companies would be responsible enough to call installation work off, whether the fitters want to carry on regardless or not. I hope that safety is a paramount concern when working conditions are so difficult. I am sure there are some out there though, perhaps some OMB’s or very small installation companies who would ignore the warnings. If so, that is very stupid and put their life, as well as those around them in danger.
It is an unfortunate trait that our industry tends to be so affected by the weather. As ours is an outdoors industry, the conditions determine what can be done. When it snows, we don’t fit. When there are high winds, we don’t fit. When there is heavy rain, we don’t fit. But when the sun is out, the weather is dry, it really does encourage people to get outdoor and start paying some attention to their homes. So we have to take the rough with the smooth in our line of work. At the moment, we are having rather a lot of rough.
The worst of the weather is still not done yet. There is a storm surge approaching the south and east of the country that threatens flooding on a massive scale. If you are around that neck of the woods, heed the warnings, go inland and keep as safe as you can. A house is only bricks and mortar and can be rebuilt.
Wherever you are, be safe out there!