Sauna-tation Trucks Put Extra Heat on Crews; Union Cites Safety Issues
By TOMMY HALLISSEY
In nearly two decades at the Sanitation Department, Timothy Rice has never been so hot under the collar.

The Chief-Leader/Michel Friang 'GRIT YOUR TEETH AND BEAR IT': Manhattan Sanitation Workers Robert Casanovas (left) and Timothy Rice say the new, environmentally friendly Sanitation trucks are melting their personal ozone layers, with Mr. Rice claiming cabs get as hot as 120 degrees when the temperature outside is in the high 80s.

Mr. Rice and other Sanitation Workers have complained that the department's new environmentally friendly trucks have reached temperatures of 120-degrees in the cab this summer. "These are the hottest trucks I've been on in 18 years," Mr. Rice said. "It feels like a furnace."

'Like Being in the Desert'

"On a hot day it's like being in the Sahara Desert — just dripping," said fellow Sanman Robert Casanovas. "You have to work. You have to grit your teeth and bear it."

In response to complaints, Uniformed Sanitationmen's Association President Harry Nespoli reached an agreement with the department two weeks ago to provide each Sanman with a two-liter bottle of water. Mr. Nespoli said the temperatures in the trucks greatly exceed the temperatures outside — the cab might be 112 degrees on an 85-degree day. "No matter how hot it gets we got to get the job done," he said. "We have a lot of complaints about our members getting dizzy. I don't want anything to happen to the public or any of our members."

Some of New York's Strongest said the liquids made a difference, but it was still piping hot in those trucks. "When you are picking up 12 or 13 tons of garbage and you are out in the streets sweating, there is nothing like H2O," Mr. Rice said.

The Sanitation Department noted the heat in the green trucks was the result of the design of the new diesel trucks, which have the engine under the cab. "As a result of these changes, diesel engines in some of the newer department trucks may produce more heat causing the temperatures inside the cab of the truck to be higher than that of trucks in the past," First Deputy Commissioner Michael A. Bimonte stated in a department memo, which called for water to be distributed when the forecasted temperature was to exceed 80 degrees.

Must Work Regardless

No water, however, does not mean no work at the Sanitation Department. Shortage of water "does not constitute a reason for Sanitation Workers to refuse their assignment," he wrote. "Regardless of forecasted temperature."

Mr. Nespoli said during the summer people frequently approached him to ask how his members were coping in the heat. He remarked, "Could you imagine someone passing out in a Sanitation truck with their foot on the accelerator?"

The union leader views the bottled water as more of a stopgap measure for this summer. "The permanent solution is if they could turn around and put some air conditioning in those trucks," he said.

Mr. Casanovas remained skeptical of a quick cool-down. "I will believe it when I see it," he said.

The union president is not going to let the department forget about air-conditioning these trucks. "I'm not going to allow the department to say, 'hey, it's September, hey it's October, it's not a priority,''' Mr. Nespoli said. "As long as they sit down and we can talk one way or the other we'll get it done."