Working in the Mojave Desert brings a unique set of challenges, such as extreme heat and lightning. High winds and surface heat regularly create dust devils strong enough to carry tumbleweeds 100ft in the air. Donald Dennis, EH&S Manager for Leeward Renewable Energy, is responsible for managing these risks and briefing all personnel on the conditions they’ll be facing for the day.

“Out here, we’re facing all types of elements. The only thing that we do get a lack of is rain, but when we do get rain, we have to gauge it.”

Donald Dennis, EH&S Manager for Leeward Renewable Energy

The responsibilities of an EH&S manager

On any given day, Donald could be training contract workers on site, ensuring everyone is wearing the proper PPE and working through stacks of paperwork to make sure the site is complying with California OSHA.

On top of these responsibilities, EH&S managers like Donald often have to also play the role of a weatherman, staying up to date on all the weather conditions that can possibly affect the site.

The traditional approach for many is to use free apps to keep up with the weather. Unfortunately, these apps are limited by a number of factors. They not only give significantly delayed readings but also display weather data from public weather stations that could be 10-15 miles away, making the data irrelevant for more rural sites like Leeward’s AVEP site.

Leeward adopts Perry Weather for lightning detection and heat safety

Inaccurate readings, delayed alerts, and the inconvenience of constantly having to manually check various weather conditions all played a part in Leeward’s decision to adopt Perry Weather. 

Donald no longer has to take guesses at what the conditions will be for a given day by using inaccurate data from unreliable free apps. Instead, he’s able to get an accurate assessment of exactly what they will be facing on a given day using real-time data from the on-site Perry Weather station.

“In the mornings, I get on the Perry Weather app and give the morning meeting, and I’m able to give these guys an accurate account of what they’re going to face that day… it all boils down to information.”

Donald Dennis, EH&S Manager for Leeward Renewable Energy

Leeward’s switch to quick and reliable lightning detection

Before using Perry Weather, many of Leeward’s EHS managers used free apps such as WeatherBug. Free apps like WeatherBug can be problematic for lightning detection since they only send alerts in 30-minute increments. This leaves construction workers at risk for a long period of time.

According to the National Weather Service, the typical thunderstorm only lasts 30 minutes. This means a storm could come and go before the free apps ever tell you that there is lightning in the area. 

Donald has used multiple apps to reference lightning strikes, and he has repeatedly found that Perry Weather is the quickest and most reliable system he has used.

“Perry Weather gives the alert before my lightning apps go off, and I have one app just geared to lightning. Perry Weather does other functionalities too, but lightning alerts are key.”

Donald Dennis, EH&S Manager for Leeward Renewable Energy

Additional ways Perry Weather reduces risk during thunderstorms

In addition to detecting lightning, Perry Weather also reduces the uncertainty and confusion around lightning stand-down through a few additional features.

• Mobile notifications – Leeward EH&S Managers get mobile push notifications and text messages with automated instructions on what to do when lightning is detected.
• Lightning Stand-down timer – The timer enables workers on site to know exactly when it’s safe to resume work. It starts counting down from 20 minutes after the first strike is detected. Once the system detects no more lightning in the area, it gives an all-clear signal.
• Outdoor warning system – Perry Weather sounds a loud siren letting everyone know to seek shelter when lightning is in the area. A visible strobe light helps everyone get the message, even if they are occupied with tasks that require hearing protection.
• Text-to-speech PA system – Communicate to anyone on the work site directly through the Perry Weather mobile app. Send text-to-speech messages through the on-site loudspeakers from anywhere using the Perry Weather app.

Mitigating the risk of heat illness in the Mojave Desert

One of the primary weather safety concerns for EH&S managers at Leeward’s AVEP site is the threat of heat illnesses. The Mojave desert is Earth’s third hottest desert. Just northeast of the work site is Death Valley, which reached an unforgiving 129 degrees in July of 2024, just 5 degrees shy of surpassing the highest ever recorded in Death Valley.

Working in this level of heat means that workers have to be cautious with the clothing that they choose to wear on site and the amount of time they go without hydrating or cooling down.

How Perry Weather is taking the guesswork out of heat safety decisions

After switching to Perry Weather for heat monitoring, Leeward’s team was able to monitor the heat on-site more accurately, and better ensure the safety of their team during especially hot days on site.

“The biggest benefit in all seriousness…it’s accuracy. What I’m looking for is as close as I can get, to the numbers and for what I’ve seen using multiple apps, Perry Weather is as close as I’m going to get to the numbers.”

Donald Dennis, EH&S Manager for Leeward Renewable Energy

This was essential given the rural environment that the AVEP battery storage site resides in. With no public weather stations near the site, free apps are unreliable sources of temperature and heat index data.

• Accurate on-site weather station – Perry Weather calculates air temperature, heat index and wet bulb globe temperature using data from an on-site weather station, giving the most accurate readings.
• Policy-based alerts – Perry Weather sends push notifications and text messages to all users when the temperature rises above the CalOSHA-recommended thresholds.
• Predictive heat stress warnings – The system also predicts when the heat will breach the threshold in advance so that your team can dress properly for the day.

How Perry Weather helps Leeward schedule work around high winds

High winds are a common occurrence at Leeward’s AVEP battery storage site. High surface heat on the desert landscape causes rapid updrafts which create dust devils and high winds that are disruptive to the work on site.

Using data from the on-site Perry Weather station, Leeward can get an accurate account of the wind speed and make a call to pause work if the risk endangers employees when lifting components.

By bringing Perry Weather into their daily routine, Leeward Renewable Energy has completely changed how they handle on-site weather risks. 

With accurate, real-time data that’s specific to their location, Donald Dennis and his team can quickly make the right decisions when facing the weather of the Mojave Desert like unexpected high winds, extreme heat, and lightning threats. Perry Weather isn’t just helping with worker safety; it’s reducing the load on EH&S managers like Donald, and letting them focus on the tasks that need their attention the most.