DUBAI // A 15-minute animated film written by an Indian pharmacist is being shown to construction workers to warn them about the dangers of heat-related illnesses during the summer. Created by Snehal Deshpande, the film ProlyteLal is being seen by between 500 and 2,000 workers every day. "Lal" is a common Indian last name and "prolyte" refers to electrolytes, which are crucial for the body as temperatures soar.
The message is presented in song by a tangerine-shaped cartoon character named ProlyteLal who sports a yellow helmet, white gloves and work boots. Using Hindi and Urdu lyrics set to music with a backdrop of photographs of men working in buildings, he speaks of how he came overseas to work and support his family at home. "I didn't realise it could get quite so hot, that I could keep drinking water and my thirst would not be quenched, that my throat would get so parched and my hands and legs would shake," the moustached character says.
He speaks of how he ignored the warning signs and fell from a building site. "I thought, why did I come here to die in this heat, forgetting the love of my wife and children?" The film has been seen by workers in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Ras al Khaimah, Fujairah, Ajman and Sharjah. It was produced by the National Trading and Pharmaceutical Est (NTPE) in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour. Ms Deshpande, a divisional manager with NTPE, thought of using music and language the workers understood to reach out to them.
"We have used poetic lyrics, the language and music touch a chord with workers. We knew just slides would not work," Ms Deshpande said. "They are happy ProlyteLal talks to them in their own language." Workers are told initial symptoms of headache, dizzy spells, cramps and nausea should not be ignored. "We explain that if they continue to work when they experience any one of these symptoms, it could lead to accidents," she said.
The film uses simple explanations to teach workers that when their body loses too much water, they will stop perspiring. Then, their temperatures will rise and their organs could stop functioning. "We stress the effects of severe dehydration and excessive loss of body sodium in layman's terms," Ms Deshpande said. The importance of drinking water, lemon juice and drinks with electrolytes is also emphasised.
Workers are taught to sprinkle water on a co-worker if he falls unconscious, take him to a shaded area and call for help. "The common refrain we hear from workers is that the water they drink becomes so hot that it's not possible to drink it. Companies do provide coolers, but sometimes the number of workers is so high, the water doesn't cool," Ms Deshpande said. In the film, ProlyteLal signs off by reminding workers to put down tools at 12.30pm. The two-and-a-half hour midday break rule enforced by the Ministry of Labour began last week and extends to September 15. Inspectors can fine offenders between Dh10,000 and Dh30,000 and ban them from issuing new labour permits.
Labourers must be given sheltered areas with circulated air to rest and rehydrate, or be taken by bus to spend the early afternoon at a suitable off-site rest area. But it permits labourers to continue working in shaded areas, such as unfinished buildings, even if the structure lacks windows or air conditioning. Last year 2,717 people were treated for heat-related illnesses. The number of deaths relating to heat is not known.
Dr Jens Thomsen, the Health Authority-Abu Dhabi's head of occupational and environmental health, said earlier this month that these figures were the "tip of the iceberg". @Email:rtalwar@thenational.ae
