Qatar World Cup construction workers to get 'cooling' hats

“Cooling” hard hats are to be distributed to construction workers who are building football stadiums ahead of the World Cup games in Qatar.

Scientists at Qatar University designed the solar-powered hard hats to improve conditions for 2022 World Cup labourers and reduce the risk of heat stroke and lower their body temperature during the summer heat.

A fan in the top of the helmet blows air over a cold pack onto the person’s face reducing skin temperature by up to 10 degrees centigrade, said Saud Ghani, an engineering professor at Qatar University.

“Our objective was to reduce heat stress and heat strokes for workers in Qatar and the region,” said Ghani.

Summer temperatures in Qatar can reach 50 degrees and Doha enforces a ban on outdoor work for several hours a day during the hottest months of the year.

But migrant workers have complained about heat exhaustion and dehydration while working in summer.

The helmets, which can provide cooling in hot temperatures for up to four hours, will be introduced at all World Cup building sites next summer, said an official from Qatar’s Supreme Committee for Delivery and Legacy, the body overseeing the tournament’s organisation.