Extreme working conditions

[BAILEIGH INC]

What's the worst, scariest, un-safe or most extreme working conditions you have had to work in to make a buck?


I tried to weld ethanol tanks 100 feet in the air.......

[LSx_88_Ciera]

While in the Navy I climbed to the top off the radar tower to turn a wind bird around. Only had a 6" wide platform to walk 15' out on while 60' above the deck. We were doin 20mph into 40mph wind, 20' seas, ship rockin n rollin all over the place. I had a harness but it was still nerve racking. This is what happens when you are the newb.

[Damn True]

United States Coast Guard Bouytender on the Colombia River Bar.
United States Coast Guard HH-65A during "The Perfect Storm"

...and a couple of other things that remain somewhat ahem....classified....for a few more years.

[NOT A TA]

As a teenager in the mid 70's a buddy of mine told me the painting company he worked for needed some extra guys to help with a factory they were doing over X-mas shutdown. The first day we were given scrapers and sent up on scaffolding to scrape the ceiling without dustmasks. Turned out the white crap we were scraping was Cyanide deposits from evaporated chemicals used used to strip off gold plating from "seconds" in the jewlery industry. I did not go back for the next days work.

[BAILEIGH INC]

As a teenager in the mid 70's a buddy of mine told me the painting company he worked for needed some extra guys to help with a factory they were doing over X-mas shutdown. The first day we were given scrapers and sent up on scaffolding to scrape the ceiling without dustmasks. Turned out the white crap we were scraping was Cyanide deposits from evaporated chemicals used used to strip off gold plating from "seconds" in the jewlery industry. I did not go back for the next days work.

That's just wrong

[DarkBuddha]

Being a military brat, hearing the stories all my life, knowing my father navigated out into a minefield several times to pull GIs out that had stepped on mines, and hearing about the road-side bombs that hit our troops so regularly now, I think war must be the most extreme of working conditions.

[James OLC]

Pales in comparison to some of those but... worked for a few years on drilling rigs up North. Most of the time it wasn't a huge deal but there were a couple of winters where we were working in 60 below temperatures. That was back in the day when we would work 24/7 365.

[parsonsj]

I used to cut open torque converters on a 30 year old lathe. I was expected to cut open 10/hour. In 100 degree heat in the California summer. No A/C.

I ended up in the Emergency Room twice. I still have scars on my hands from that. The owner usually hired Vietnamese immigrants who were happy to have the jobs. I eventually "escaped" the torque convertor sweatshop to work up front in the retail transmission shop.

It convinced me to go to college.

jp

[Jim Nilsen]

I worked very close to heII when I was in heat treating as maintenance, more than once I had to weld up a sheild just feet way from 1300 degree flame that rolled like a sea of fire out of the bowels of the furnace.

Putting in catwalks was always fun too because if it needs a catwalk it is a hard place to get to and noone wants to go there.

Welding inside tanks is no fun either.

Cleaning up fire damage was one of my first jobs for Servicemaster. The house that got tear gassed was bad enough to draw straws for and I lost. military tear gas is really mean stuff.

Working in the wire mill for Essex Wire was like working in a container of never seize and animal fat and the stinkiest enamel coating that made you smell like a burned up motor.

The food industry really has its moments of crapola.

I really don't want to think about it anymore cause it brings back memories of times that you wonder what you will do for money.lol.

[shmoov69]

Well, just easy old Commercial Roofing for me! Winter, the worst was single ply white roofing in -25 below windchills, all day, black toes afterwards. Summer, well south Arkansas, Mississippi humidity with temps over 100 and heat index' over 125 on black tar roofs with hot tar over 500* for 12-14 hours every day. The danger, I'm sure not as bad as some, but many, many stupid things that God has saved me from! Lol.

[BAILEIGH INC]

I worked very close to heII when I was in heat treating as maintenance, more than once I had to weld up a sheild just feet way from 1300 degree flame that rolled like a sea of fire out of the bowels of the furnace.

Putting in catwalks was always fun too because if it needs a catwalk it is a hard place to get to and noone wants to go there.

Welding inside tanks is no fun either.

Cleaning up fire damage was one of my first jobs for Servicemaster. The house that got tear gassed was bad enough to draw straws for and I lost. military tear gas is really mean stuff.

Working in the wire mill for Essex Wire was like working in a container of never seize and animal fat and the stinkiest enamel coating that made you smell like a burned up motor.

The food industry really has its moments of crapola.

I really don't want to think about it anymore cause it brings back memories of times that you wonder what you will do for money.lol.

welding in a tank......no thanks...been there, won't go back

[Bow Tie 67]

I was 15 and the farmer I worked for asked me if I had ever used a chain-saw, of course I said yes. So I climb in the bucket of his Ford tracter and he raises me up to cut a 10" broken tree limb. So here I am bracing my feet in the rounded bucket, start my first chain-saw and proceed to cut the limb above my head. The saw grabbed and swung past my right leg, I shut the saw off and asked for a hand saw.

[wmhjr]

Being a military brat, hearing the stories all my life, knowing my father navigated out into a minefield several times to pull GIs out that had stepped on mines, and hearing about the road-side bombs that hit our troops so regularly now, I think war must be the most extreme of working conditions.

Yup. Either armed conflict or marriage are the most extreme for me! Done both more than once!

[69stang]

Leak checking a jet engine at power. One slip and you're fried tumbleweed. Was under a B-52 one time, my first time leak checking while in water injection. The operator thought it would be funny to make it compressor stall. I was hugging the ground praying I was still alive when it chugged. That scared the bejesus out of me.

Cutting apart the hopper on a garbage truck for a rebuild. Garbage gets packed up between panels through cracks & tears. Had a pocket of methane blow while I was cutting once. Fireball flashed under my mask and singed my beard.

[ErikLS2]

After evicting a tenant in an apartment building I owned I found the toilet to be full to the rim of the worst human excrement I have ever seen or smelled. And I'm typing this as I eat my breakfast, not a good idea I'm realizing.

[Bow Tie 67]

The operator thought it would be funny to make it compressor stall. I was hugging the ground praying I was still alive when it chugged. That scared the bejesus out of me.

That is funny, but oh so wrong.

[130fe]

Flying around Iraq and Afghanistan at low altitudes (< 250ft) avoiding small arms fire and other various "projectiles" was definitely fun. The only better thing was going back to your tent after a days work and have rat catching contests with the guys in the next tent or when the AC was out in the summertime.

[MarkM66]

I used to cut open torque converters on a 30 year old lathe. I was expected to cut open 10/hour. In 100 degree heat in the California summer. No A/C.

I ended up in the Emergency Room twice. I still have scars on my hands from that. The owner usually hired Vietnamese immigrants who were happy to have the jobs. I eventually "escaped" the torque convertor sweatshop to work up front in the retail transmission shop.

It convinced me to go to college.

jp

I had that exact same revalation while working a job rolling bubbles out of fiberglass gell coat. No PPE, no a/c... no me.

[chevyhector]

I was married to a $$$ hungry bi*ch for 13 years ! LMAO !

[zbugger]

I used to print t-shirts at our shop in the central valley in California. Worst time was in the 115* summer heat. I was catching the shirts coming out of the drier. That things temp was at 350* all the time. That day in the spot I was standing for 8 hours was a little over 130*. I drank a gallon and a half of water by 2 p.m.