Injury-free days on the slopes are few and far between. To some extent, mishaps just go with the terrain when millions of skiers per season, people of all ages and skill levels, are turned loose on snow and ice at high altitudes with boards strapped to their feet. It doesn’t help that snow has a tendency to shift or that trail conditions can change hourly.
Work on an offshore oil or gas rig presents many hazards. Getting out there can be dangerous, too, because of sea and weather conditions. Helicopter transport has a good safety record, but even the United Kingdom Offshore Oil and Gas Industry Association Ltd, which claims to be the world leader in offshore helicopter safety, has experienced two fatal crashes, with 18 deaths, in the past decade.
Dr. Mike Holbrook, director of the Robert E. Shope, M.D., Laboratory, a Biosafety Level-4 lab at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, deals with some of the deadliest viruses known to man, including Ebola, Marburg, Lassa, Junin, and Nipah viruses. It goes without saying that special precautions are put into place to ensure total security and safety.
St. Elmo’s Fire, with its eerie emanations of iridescent hues, possesses a mystical quality for many. For centuries, sailors either sought shelter or stood in awe of it. But for Greg Bast, the phenomenon is just another part of his job. “It’s aesthetically pleasing, in that it’s kind of neat to watch it, but it can also get a little weird when it discharges and starts running down the side of the airplane and bouncing off the prop tips and everything else.”