OSHA Fines Roofing Company for Hyperthermia Death

The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has cited Middleburg, Florida-based Southeastern Subcontractors Inc. for failing to protect employees from the dangerous hazards of working outdoors in extreme heat.

OSHA investigated the roofing company after an employee died from hyperthermia while working at a residential site in
Jacksonville. Hyperthermia occurs when the body’s temperature is abnormally high because it cannot regulate the heat from the environment. The agency issued one serious citation for exposing employees to heat-related injuries, and one other-than-serious violation for failing to report a workplace fatality to OSHA within eight hours of its occurrence. The company faces proposed penalties of $22,173.

“Employees exposed to heat on the job—whether indoors or outdoors—are at an increased risk of suffering heat-related illnesses, such as heat exhaustion and heat stroke,” said Brian Sturtecky, OSHA Jacksonville Area Office Director. “Tragedies such as these can be prevented if employers develop and implement a heat illness prevention program, and provide employees with water, rest, and shade.”