23-year-old landscaper worker dies from heat exposure near Poplar Bluff

POPLAR BLUFF, Mo.-- A 23-year old landscaping employee working on the ground, flagging traffic, chipping limbs, and stacking brush, during tree trimming operations near Poplar Bluff became overheated around 4:30 p.m. Friday, when the heat index reached about 110 degrees. The employee had been in the heat since his shift started around 7 a.m. He was hospitalized with a core temperature above 108 degrees and died on Saturday, according to a news release from Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

His death occurred on his fourth day of employment with Townsend Tree Service of Muncie, Ind. The Dexter, Missouri, resident was part of a three-man crew that was trimming trees along over-head power lines.

"This was a tragic and preventable death," said Bill McDonald, OSHA's area director in St. Louis. "Heat-related illnesses are preventable when employers take a few simple steps to ensure workers' safety and health. Working in full sunlight can increase heat index values by 15 degrees Fahrenheit. Employers must keep this in mind and plan additional precautions for working in these conditions. Those steps include acclimating workers to the hot environments, frequent water breaks, allowing ample time to rest, and providing shade."

With temperatures expected to continue well into the 90s and the 100s for the next several days throughout much of the nation, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, is reminding employers to protect workers that may be exposed to extreme heat while working outdoors or in hot indoor environments.

OSHA's Heat Safety Tool App is available to employers, employees and the public for free download on iPhones and Android phones.

Each year, thousands of workers suffer the effects of heat exposure and, in some cases, die as a result. In 2014 alone, 2,630 workers suffered from heat illness and 18 died from heat stroke and related causes on the job.

The most common problem identified in heat-related deaths and illness of workers is the lack of a heat prevention and acclimatization programs by their employer, according to federal safety investigators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

"A review of heat related deaths revealed the majority of workers had just started the job, and frequently it was their first day on the job and the workers were not acclimated to the constant exposure to the heat and sun," said Bonita Winingham, OSHA's Acting Regional Administrator in Kansas City, Missouri.

A common mistake is assuming that the worker is not at risk for heat stroke if they are still sweating. You can still be sweating and have heat stroke. A common symptom of heat stroke is mental changes, such as confusion or irritability. Heat stroke is an emergency. If there is any suggestion of heat stroke, call 911 and institute the other safety measures as quickly as possible. To learn more about heat stress symptoms see OSHA's Heat Stress Quick Card http://www.osha.gov/Publications/osha3154.pdf