After several cast and crew members of the Snowpiercer TV show in British Columbia needed medical attention during the latest heat wave, a workplace safety inspector ordered producers to bring a a number of modifications to their plans to deal with the extreme heat.
WorkSafeBC was called to the Pitt Meadows set of the TNT show when several workers “became ill and sought medical help due to overexposure to the heat” on July 28, wrote Jackie Law, head of the hygiene, in its inspection report.
Some of those workers had to be treated in hospital, according to the British Columbia chapter of the Directors Guild of Canada (DGC), one of the unions that represents crew members on set.
Law found a few issues with the production’s extreme heat risk assessment, including not accounting for long-sleeved suits or radiant heat from filming outside, not monitoring and recording the heat and the humidity every hour, and failing to identify the most vulnerable workers, including those who spend more time in the sun or have more physical jobs.
“The employer shall conduct a heat stress assessment to determine the potential for hazardous worker exposure, using measures and methods acceptable to the board. The employer shall remedy any deficiencies found,” Law wrote in his arrangement.
In an email to CBC, production company Tomorrow Studios confirmed that filming ended early “out of an abundance of caution” when workers began to fall ill in the heat and were suspended again the following day.
“The health and well-being of the cast and crew of the series remains the top priority,” a spokesperson said.
More bouts of extreme heat ‘an unfortunate reality’
Snowpiercer, a post-apocalyptic drama starring Jennifer Connelly and Daveed Diggs, is currently filming its fourth season.
About 276 workers were on site last week at a rural address north of Pitt Meadows when cast, film crew and first aid personnel began to feel ill, according to the WorkSafeBC report.
According to Environment Canada, the temperature at Pitt Meadows peaked at 34.2°C on July 28.
A spokesperson for DGC BC said the union is also looking into what happened on set.
“It is a sad reality that extreme heat episodes are becoming more frequent, affecting many workplaces, including film sets,” they wrote in an email.
“It is essential that if workers are exposed to conditions that could cause heat stress, employers create and implement effective exposure control plans to keep workers safe.”
Although WorkSafeBC found issues with the production’s thermal safety plan, the inspection report notes that there were cooling tents and water stations on set, along with three registered nurses and multiple first aiders. .
After last week’s incident, the production team implemented new measures, including hourly heat and humidity monitoring, 15-30 minute breaks every hour, and a requirement to staff to wear hats in hot weather, says the inspection report.
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