National Safety Council News Release, September 20
For Immediate Release Contact: Joe Larkin September 20, 2002 (630) 775-2303 National Safety Council Congress & Expo Salutes "Everyday Heroes" Itasca, Ill. - The National Safety Council (NSC), America's safety and health leader for 90 years, will celebrate "Everyday Heroes," including embattled soldiers and war correspondents, trapped coal miners and their rescuers, and the thousands of safety and health professionals in attendance at this year's Congress & Expo in San Diego, October 7-9. The nation's largest annual safety, health and environmental convention, Congress & Expo is designed to help America's safety professionals prepare for the health and safety challenges of today and tomorrow. On October 7, at the Opening Session, Joseph L. Galloway, a career journalist and co-author of "We Were Soldiers Once...and Young," will share his experiences as an "Everyday Hero" reporting on the battle at Ia Drang, which changed the course of the War in Vietnam. Galloway's book has been made into a critically acclaimed movie "We Were Soldiers" starring Mel Gibson. National Safety Council President Alan C. McMillan will salute the thousands of "Everyday Heroes" in the NSC's family of safety professionals as he spells out his vision for the Council. Attendees will be among the first to hear his important and compelling message, which challenges the safety profession and sets the agenda for safety in America. On Tuesday, October 8, John Henshaw, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Occupational Safety and Health, and Dave D. Lauriski, Assistant Secretary of Labor for Mine Safety and Health, will present the Occupational Keynote Address. Patrick R. Tyson, National Safety Council Chairman of the Board, will moderate a Q & A session at the end of the presentations. John Urosek, Mine Safety and Health Administration's (MSHA) chief of the ventilation division, and fellow MSHA employee Kevin Stricklin, will display the capsule used to rescue the trapped Somerset, Pa. miners. Urosek's initiative of holding back water by forcing compressed air into the cavity where the Pennsylvania miners were trapped saved their lives. Stricklin was also involved in the rescue effort. They will be speaking at session #94, "Mine Safety Legislative & Litigation Update." On Wednesday, October 9, Dr. John Howard, newly appointed Director, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's (CDC) National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), will present the Occupational Keynote "Occupational Safety and Health Research: Challenges for the Upcoming Decade" Dr. Howard will be joined by Alan C. McMillan at the end of the session for Q & A's. The second Hispanic Forum on a Safe and Healthy Environment begins after the Opening Session on October 7. This forum focuses on building the capacity of Hispanic community-based and Hispanic-serving organizations in ways that equip them to address the safety, health and environmental protection needs of Hispanics in the U.S. and Latin America. Several educational sessions are offered in Spanish. NSC President Alan McMillan said, "With more than 200 comprehensive and targeted educational sessions and over 800 exhibiting companies from the U.S. and 60 countries around the globe, Congress and Expo offers key information on the future of safety and how to apply it in the workplace." The Expo is the industry's leading networking event designed to provide a forum where manufacturers of safety and health products and services can meet with safety and health professionals. The National Safety Council is a nonprofit, nongovernmental membership organization dedicated to reducing unintentional injuries in homes and communities, in the workplace and on the road. For more information about Congress and Expo 2002, visit the website at <http://www.congress.nsc.org>. # # #