Land surveyor dies of bee stings while cutting a path through dense terrain with a machete
Two surveying employees were creating topographic maps of an area. One used a machete to cut a path through dense terrain about 15 feet ahead of the other, who noticed bees and yelled for both to run. The lead employee was overwhelmed by bees in his face and hands, impairing his vision as both tried to flee through the terrain, tripping over vines. He died of bee stings; cause pending medical examiner report at time of filing.
Incident Summary
Two surveying employees were creating topographic maps of an area. One used a machete to cut a path through dense terrain about 15 feet ahead of the other, who noticed bees and yelled for both to run. The lead employee was overwhelmed by bees in his face and hands, impairing his vision as both tried to flee through the terrain, tripping over vines. He died of bee stings; cause pending medical examiner report at time of filing.
Public-Safety Lesson
First St. Lucie County, FL record in this dataset - illustrates that disturbing ground-level or brush-concealed hives during fieldwork (not just tree/structure work) is a distinct and serious risk.
Impact Flags
Source Information
Source: OSHA
Source Strength: A