July 10, 2008

The research

describes the death in 2005 of a Hispanic male working on a North Carolina farm. On his third day on the job, he started at about 6 a.m., took a short break and a 90-minute lunch. In the afternoon he was observed working slowly and seemed confused, and was removed from the heat. Around 4:30 the man was taken by ambulance to a hospital emergency room. His core body temperature was recorded at 108 degrees and, soon after, he died, reportedly from heat-stroke.

Although the worker had been trained about pesticide safety, he had not been instructed on heat hazards.

CDC identified 423 worker deaths from heat between 1992 and 2006. Of these, 24 percent occurred in workers employed in the agriculture, forestry, fishing, and hunting industries. And among those, 68 percent affected agricultural workers.

CDC says the largest number of heat-related deaths was in construction, but the highest rate was among crop workers. Talking to workers in their native language about heat risks is essential, NIOSH says.