Monday, January 8, 2018

Cal/OSHA Issues Citations Following Fatal Bee Attack on Tree Worker


News Release No.: 2018-02 Date: January 4, 2018

Cal/OSHA Issues Citations Following Fatal Bee Attack on Tree Worker

San Bernardino—Cal/OSHA has issued citations to Hadley Date Gardens Inc. of Thermal for serious workplace safety and health violations following a bee swarm that stung and killed a tree worker. The incident serves as a reminder that employers must protect tree workers from these types of hazards.

On July 3, 2017, a tree worker was spraying water on date palm fruit from the elevated bucket of a spraying rig when a beehive was disturbed. The bees repeatedly stung the worker, who suffered anaphylactic shock and died at the site.

“Recognized workplace hazards for tree workers include bee and other harmful insect exposure,” said Cal/OSHA Chief Juliann Sum. “Employers must identify and evaluate workplace hazards, and provide appropriate personal protective equipment and effective training to their workers.”

Cal/OSHA issued four citations totaling $41,310 in proposed penalties for workplace safety and health violations, two of which were classified as serious accident-related. Hadley Date Gardens, Inc. failed to evaluate the worksite for hazardous bee and insect exposure, and failed to establish appropriate safety protocols, which include providing appropriate personal protective equipment and training that could have prevented this incident.

Cal/OSHA’s Tree Work Safety guidelines specifically cite bee stings as a potentially fatal hazard of which employers must be aware.


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Our thoughts go out to the tree worker whose life was lost to this unfortunate incident.

Be sure to train your employees on tree worker safety. These types of courses should cover general tree safety guidelines and environmental hazards. Environmental hazards should include heat/cold stress, poisonous plants and insect bites.

Click here to view our course outline.

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