Whoosh. That’s the sound “Dirty Jobs” star Mike Rowe remembered hearing when a ball of flame enveloped his head, burning off his eyebrows and fusing his contact lenses to his eyeballs. It was just one of the many times the Baltimore native and founder of the mikeroweWORKS Foundation demonstrated the value of what the International Safety Equipment Association (ISEA) calls “PPE” — personal protective equipment.

Rowe was recently honored with the prestigious Robert B. Hurley Distinguished Service Award during the ISEA Foundation’s Industry Awards Celebration at the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. No PPE was needed during the award presentation, luckily, but Rowe regaled the audience with compelling stories from his experiences in the field, engaging and enlightening attendees with his commitment to advancing safety protocols across industries.

He recalled that he wasn’t wearing eye protection that flamingly fateful day — fire-resistant goggles would have been appropriate, at least — but amazingly his contact lenses did the trick. Instead of melting into his eyes, a doctor later told him they saved them. Nonetheless, the safety-chastened Rowe was left picking pieces of plastic out of his eyes for a while afterward.

Rowe’s eyes aren’t the only victims of the hands-on ‘dirtiest man on TV’ schtick he perfected to the delight of viewers over the past 20 years. His hands have also endured much, suffering injuries and mishaps. As he once shared with Entertainment Weekly, ‘I’ve gotten stitched up three or four times. I’ve broken a rib, I’ve broken a toe, I’ve lost three fingernails.’ Coincidentally, ISEA recently released a revised industry standard for hand protection, highlighting the critical nature of appropriate safety gear for various tasks.

Through his mikeroweWORKS Foundation, Rowe has championed the skilled trades and relentlessly emphasized the importance of safety for the workers who keep America running.

“Mike’s message is more relevant than ever,” said ISEA President & CEO Cam Mackey. “We were so pleased he accepted our invitation to honor him with the Robert B. Hurley Distinguished Service Award. His efforts have put workplace safety and the life-saving equipment and training behind it on the national stage. With his trademark humor and — literally — hands-on approach, he has made conversations about safety engaging, informative and fun for millions.”

Making safety and PPE top of mind has been part of ISEA’s mission since the association’s founding more than 90 years ago. On behalf of its member companies, ISEA takes the lead in developing and updating ANSI-accredited safety equipment consensus performance standards, in the U.S. and around the world.

Those standards are vital for the safety marketplace, ensuring that manufacturers, safety professionals, end users and government agencies alike have clear and consistent guidance written and vetted in a transparent and consensus process by product group subject matter experts.

ISEA currently maintains 15 standards covering product categories including high visibility apparel, protective headwear, hand protection, emergency eyewash and shower equipment, and more. The standards are widely used for construction safety, in industrial settings, hospitals, laboratories, and factories.

The PPE and safety equipment industry protects over 125,000,000 workers in the U.S., supports 350,000 jobs, and generates $72B of economic activity. The industry directly employs 130,000 workers and pays state and federal taxes of $9B. ISEA offers insights into the safety equipment industry’s nationwide impact with this concise and compelling report (PDF).

Learn more about PPE and the safety equipment industry at SafetyEquipment.org.