lornajarrettblanchard

— 10  LA Times. “10…Feared Dead at Texas River: 2 Youths Killed, 8…Missing….” 7-18-1987.

— 10  National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 2.

 

Narrative Information

 

NCDC: “Only one month after the extensive floods of late May and early June 1987, flash flooding returned to the South Texas Hill Country on July 17^th after overnight rains of as much as 11.50 inches. This time, 10 persons drowned when a bus and van carrying 4 adults and 39 teenagers were swept into the Guadalupe River by the floodwaters….” [p. 2]

 

“During the evening of July 16^th and the early morning of the 17^th, moisture-laden thunderstorms moved slowly eastward through the hill Country of South-Central Texas, producing flash flooding across seven counties north and northwest of San Antonio. The train-effect storms, one following another, dumped as much as 11.50 inches of rain 9 miles west of Hunt, and 5 to 10 inch amounts were common throughout the area. The resulting flooding was mainly concentrated along the Guadalupe River and its tributaries, the same area that was heavily affected by flooding in late May and early June 1987…However, this flooding resulted in a tragic loss of life when a bus and van leaving a summer camp became stranded in floodwaters along the Guadalupe River just west of Comfort. As the vehicles were being evacuated, a surge of water rushing downstream swept 39 teenagers and 4 adults into the raging river. Ten persons drowned and the remaining 33 were rescued by helicopter, mostly from tree tops to which they were clinging.” [p. 13] (National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987.)

 

July 18, LA Times: “Comfort, Tex. — two teen-agers died and eight others were missing and believed drowned Friday when a bus and a van carrying them from a church campground were swamped by an 8-foot wall of water during an attempted crossing of the storm-swollen Guadalupe River.

 

“A 14-year-old Mesquite, Tex., girl was killed when she apparently lost her grip on a helicopter rescue line and dropped an estimated 100 feet into a field while being lifted from the raging river. The body of the other known fatality, a 13-year-old girl from Scurry, Tex., was found about three miles downstream.

 

“Texas Department of Public Safety officers said at least 19 of the 33 survivors were treated for injuries. Only two were hospitalized overnight, one in guarded condition and the other in stable condition….

 

“Some teen-agers clung to trees singing hymns for up to three hours as the floodwaters slowly subsided and Army helicopters from Ft. Sam Houston at nearby San Antonio crisscrossed the area, lifting them to safety one by one. Men and dogs combed the banks until nightfall, but found no more survivors or bodies. The effort was to resume at daybreak today….

 

“All of the missing were teen-agers. The two drivers and two other adults accompanying the campers were able to reach the shore.

 

“The bus, which was swept about 150 yards downstream, was not found until 10 hours after the 7:30 a.m. accident. The van had not been found by evening.

 

“The teen-agers were from Seagoville Road Baptist Church in the Dallas suburb of Balch Springs. They had been on retreat with youngsters from nine other Dallas area churches at the Pot o’ Gold campground, just west of Comfort. Seale said there were 32 people on the bus and 11 aboard the van. The two vehicles had left the campground with other buses after authorities ordered an evacuation because it had been raining heavily all night and the river was rising far beyond its banks.

 

“Kendall County Sheriff Lee D’ Spain Jr. said camp officials had been called between 3 and 4 a.m. and warned not to try crossing the bridge. He said he thought the accident would not have happened if “they would have taken notice of the warning.”

 

“Public Safety Trooper Tom Mobley said that other buses managed to cross the bridge safely, although it was awash with at least one foot of water. But the bus driven by Richard (Whitey) Koons, 26, a youth pastor of the group, stalled out in the wake of the others. Mobley said Koons saw the wall of water rushing toward his bus. Koons ordered his passengers to get out of the bus and onto the bridge, where they formed a hand-to-hand chain, Mobley said. Just then, however, the water hit and swept them and the bus from the submerged bridge.

 

“The unidentified driver of the van just behind them also got his passengers off, but the water was quickly up to the steering wheel.

 

“Melissa Henderson, 17, of Mesquite, the daughter of a Baptist minister, was aboard the bus. She said many of the teen-agers screamed in horror as the bus stalled on the flooded bridge. “When we got off, everybody tried to get over to the side,” she said. “Everybody went under water. We were in trees across from each other.”

 

“Jeremy Morris, 13, of Balch Springs, was in the van when the bus stalled ahead of it and the van driver tried to back to safety. “The van began floating and then we got out and it started sinking,” he said. “We got out of there and the kids were holding hands in a line.”…

 

“Melanie Finley, 14, of Mesquite, was rescued twice–only to die in a horrifying plunge. Seale said she was pulled from the water initially by a San Antonio television camera helicopter crew, but she fell back into the river and was swept away. She then tried to seize a tree branch, but a large log struck her in the back as it shot down the river on the powerful current. In panic, she grabbed a cypress limb but, said Seale, who was in a Department of Public Safety helicopter, “we could see she was not holding on well. We dropped a line to her and she put it around her shoulder. She waved to us and we pulled her up.” She was dangling below the helicopter as it rose from the river’s surface and swung toward an open field. She slipped from the rope and fell to the ground as her would-be rescuers watched….

 

“The other teen-ager, whose body was found downriver, was identified as Tonya Smith, a church school cheerleader.

 

“It was the worst flooding on the Guadalupe River in more than a half century, officials said….”

 

July 18, UPI: “Balch Springs, Texas….About a dozen people gathered at Seagoville Road Baptist Church in the Dallas suburb to share their grief and await word on the search for passengers aboard a church bus and van swept Friday off a low-water crossing into the flooded Guadalupe River. Eight people were killed and 33 injured. Two passengers were missing Saturday. Six of the dead were identified as Melanie Finley, 13, of Mesquite; Stacy Smith, 16, and Tonya Smith, 13, of Scurry; Lagenia Keenum, 15, and Michael O’Neal, 16, of Balch Springs; and Michael Lane, 18, of Dallas. Lagenia Keenum celebrated her 15^th birthday Friday…” (UPI. “Family, friends and survivors of a church bus accident…” 7-18-1987.)

 

July 19, AP: “Balch Springs (AP) — Residents said Saturday they’re feeling helpless rage and frustration as the close-knit community grapples with the deaths of at least six teen-agers swept into Guadalupe River on their last day of Bible camp….Six bodies were recovered from the steely gray waters by midday Saturday [July 18] and four others were missing as searchers scoured the river’s banks and helicopters hovered above….” (Associated Press, Balch Springs. “Grief-stricken town encounters rage, frustration.” Big Spring Herald, TX, 7-19-1987, p. 3A.)

 

July 19, LA Times: “Comfort, Tex. — Searchers found six more bodies in the churning Guadalupe River on Saturday, bringing the death toll to eight and leaving two missing after a bus and van from a church camp were swamped by floodwaters.

 

“About 500 people, backed by helicopters, National Guardsmen, scuba divers and specially trained dogs, fanned out along the river, which had returned to its normal level but was a rushing torrent when the accident occurred Friday….

 

“Late Saturday [July 18], searchers found a body 18 miles downstream from the accident. Earlier, they had pulled the bodies of two 16-year-olds, a boy and a girl, from the slate-gray waters. They also found three bodies about six miles from the accident, authorities said. The bodies of two teen-age girls, also among the 43 people on the vehicles from the Seagoville Road Baptist Church in Balch Springs, were recovered Friday.

 

“Meanwhile, authorities said they had brought the drivers of the two vehicles to the scene of the tragedy and determined that the two were not attempting to cross the river as authorities had believed. Troopers said at a news conference that the bus was 182 feet from the low-water crossing when it attempted to turn left, parallel to the river, and follow three other buses to a higher paved road, through water that had washed up onto the river’s bank. But the vehicles stalled in the rapidly rising water and passengers got out and tried to scramble to land. Pounding waves of water scattered the group and washed the bus and van away….

 

“The vehicles were bound from Camp Pot o’ Gold, a children’s camp, to a rafting expedition, said Richard Koons, 26, the church’s youth minister who was driving the bus. He said the youngsters were not being evacuated….” (Los Angeles Times. “Six More Bodies Found in River Tragedy.” 7-19-1987.)

 

July 20, AP: “Balch Springs, Tex., July 19…. Eight bodies had been recovered and a ninth was found after noon two miles downstream from the accident site, said a Department of Public Safety trooper, Mark Riordan. One victim was still missing…. The missing victim, John Bankston Jr., 17 years old, was seen at the bus assisting a friend whose broken leg was encased in a plaster cast. According to the friend, Jeff Bowman, 17, of Dallas, ”I really didn’t have time to grab my crutches, so I jumped on his back and he walked us out of the bus and he walked over to a tree and got behind it.” After about 30 minutes, John Bankston told Jeff Bowman that he was going to have to let go, and they would have to go on down the river. ”That was the last I saw of him.” Jeff Bowman said….” (Associated Press. “Family and Friends Mourn Victims of Swollen Texas River.” New York Times, 7-20-1987.)

 

July 20, AP: “Comfort, Tex. — The body of a ninth teen-ager was recovered Sunday from the Guadalupe River and the search continued for a youth who disappeared while helping others caught by a flash flood during a church camp trip….The ninth victim was identified as Leslie Gossett, 14….” (AP. “Ninth Body Found, Leaving One River Victim Missing.” Los Angeles Times, 7-20-1987.)

 

July 25, AP: “Mesquite, Texas…The football team filed into the church first Saturday, the players’ jerseys blending with the blue and white flowers surrounding two caskets in the final funeral for the victims of the Guadalupe River bus accident. Ten teen-agers were believed killed in the July 17 accident, although one body was never found. John Bankston Jr.’s casket stood empty in the two-hour service at the Berean Baptist Church. Bankston, 17, and Michael Lane, 18, were football teammates at the small Balch Springs Christian Academy, which is affiliated with the Seagoville Road Baptist Church that had sent 43 people on a church retreat…. Survivors said Lane held a barbed wire fence open so some could make it to safety, while Bankston, instead of pulling himself to safety, pushed others toward trees alongside the river. He was swept away after lifting a boy with a leg cast onto a tree….” (AP. “Two Teens Honored in Last Funeral for Texas Bus Accident Victims.” 7-25-1987.)

 

Victims

 

Bankston, John, 17

Finley, Melanie, 13

Gossett, Leslie, 14

Keenum, Lagenia, 15

Lane, Michael, 18

O’Neal, Michael, 16.

Sewell, Cynthia “Cindy” Kay, 16[1]

Sewell, William Christopher “Chris”, 12

Smith, Stacy, 16 (sister of Tonya)

Smith, Tonya, 13

 

Sources

 

Associated Press. “Family and Friends Mourn Victims of Swollen Texas River.” New York Times, 7-20-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://www.nytimes.com/1987/07/20/us/family-and-friends-mourn-victims-of-swollen-texas-river.html

 

Associated Press, Balch Springs. “Grief-stricken town encounters rage, frustration.” Big Spring Herald, TX, 7-19-1987, p. 3A. Accessed 11-3-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/texas/big-spring/big-spring-herald/1987/07-19/page-3?tag

 

Associated Press. “Ninth Body Found, Leaving One River Victim Missing.” Los Angeles Times, 7-20-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://articles.latimes.com/1987-07-20/news/mn-3022_1_ninth-body-found

 

Associated Press (Jody Cox). “Two Teens Honored in Last Funeral for Texas Bus Accident Victims.” 7-25-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1987/Two-Teens-Honored-in-Last-Funeral-for-Texas-Bus-Accident-Victims/id-4238367bbc3e39fab80fbc5e72a74e45

 

Find A Grave. “Cynthia Kay Sewell.” Record created by Donna Schulte Loth, 6-9-2010. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=53485978

 

Find A Grave. “William Christopher ‘Chris’ Sewell.” Record created by Donna Schulte Loth, 6-9-2010. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GRid=53486081

 

Los Angeles Times (Barry Bearak). “10 Are Feared Dead at Texas River: 2 Youths Killed, 8 Reported Missing as Bus, Van Are Swept Into Water.” 7-18-1987. Accessed 11-3-2016 at: http://articles.latimes.com/1987-07-18/news/mn-716_1_guadalupe-river

 

Los Angeles Times. “Six More Bodies Found in River Tragedy.” 7-19-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://articles.latimes.com/1987-07-19/news/mn-5045_1_bus-and-van

 

National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987. Asheville, NC: NCDC. Accessed 11-3-2016 at: http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-F831633D-DA67-4D6B-9DB0-E5D29536790B.pdf

 

United Press International (Bob Trott). “Family, friends and survivors of a church bus accident…” 7-18-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://www.upi.com/Archives/1987/07/18/Family-friends-and-survivors-of-a-church-bus-accident/1666553579200/

[1] Find a Grave memorial for Cynthia Sewell includes photo of memorial of victims and survivors. Photo can be enlarged to allow reading of all text.

–8 Blanco, Juan Ignacio. Murderpedia. “Daniel Patrick Lynam.” Accessed 2-11-2022.
–8 Klahn, Jim. “Eight Die in Multiple Homicide, Suicide.” Associated Press, 7-13-1987.
–8 Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, WA. “Police probe continues into shooting of family.” 7-13-1987, 5.

Narrative Information

July 13: “Federal Way, Wash. (AP) — A man described as a loner by neighbors methodically shot to death his parents, his parents-in-law, his wife and their two small children before killing himself, police said. There was no explanation for the shootings at three homes, which may have begun as early as Friday, said police in Kings County and Tacoma. The gunman was identified Sunday as 36-year-old Daniel Patrick Lynam, 36, by the King County medical examiner’s office.

“An unidentified man who said he was Lynam’s brother alerted police on Saturday that Lynam had killed people, and said Lynam had a history of mental illness, said King County police spokesman Dick Larson. When police arrived at their home here, Lynam warned them to stay back, saying ‘I don’t want to hurt you,’ Larson said.

“About 10 minutes later, they heard a noise. They entered the red, ranch- style home to find Lynam, his wife, 2-year-old daughter and 5-week-old son dead of gunshot wounds, Larson said. He said Lynam apparently killed himself. There was no sign of a struggle, Larson said.

“Police found the bodies of Lynam’s parents and in-laws Saturday night at their separate residences in north Tacoma, about 10 miles south of here.

“A .38-caliber handgun was believed to be the murder weapon, police said.

“Lynam’s parents and in-laws were shot in the head while sitting, said Pierce County Medical Examiner Emmanuel Lacsina. The Halls were in their 60s or early 70s, he said. Lacsina identified the parents as 74-year-old Thomas Lynam and 66-year-old Francis Lynam and the in-laws as Jack and Willie Mae Hall, in their 60s or early 70s.

“Autopsies on Daniel Lynam and his family were scheduled today, said Pago Olson of the King County medical examiner’s office.

“Vaughn Van Zandt, an investigator with the medical examiner’s office, identified Lynam’s wife as Linda Jean Lynam, 34, and their children as Jason, 5 weeks, and Shaina, 2.

“Authorities were called to the Halls’ apartment by a neighbor who was suspicious because rock music had been playing there through Friday night and Saturday, said Fire Lt. Clyde Nihipali.

“About two hours later, Tacoma police received a call from a woman in Olympia who said she was related to the elder Lynams, and asked police to check on them, said Tacoma Police Sgt. Steve Smith.

“The parents lived in a home on a bluff overlooking Tacoma’s Commencement Bay, while the Halls lived in a condominium about three miles away.

“Daniel Lynam had been treated for mental illness, but his mother never expressed fears she might be in danger, said Lorraine Reha, who had known the family for nearly 40 years.

“Neighbors in Federal Way said the Lynams exchanged waves and smiles but generally kept to themselves. An owner of the Halls’ condominium described Daniel and Linda Lynam as born-again Christians.

“Linda Lynam worked in the radiology department at Tacoma General Hospital, said Margaret Allen, a friend of the family.

“Neighbor Craig Ralstin said Lynam was cold and withdrawn, ‘kind of a loner’ who stayed home during the day while his wife worked.

“Jane Adamson, who lives across the street, said she saw Lynam go into his house and use the telephone after police arrived. ‘Then there was a scream and then a shot. And that was the end of it,’ Ms. Adamson said. ‘There was no shouting. There was no big noise. You could barely hear the shot.’” (Klahn, Jim. “Eight Die in Multiple Homicide, Suicide.” Associated Press, 7-13-1987.

Sources

Blanco, Juan Ignacio. Murderpedia. “Daniel Patrick Lynam.” Accessed 2-11-2022 at: https://murderpedia.org/male.L/l/lynam-daniel.htm

Klahn, Jim. “Eight Die in Multiple Homicide, Suicide.” Associated Press, 7-13-1987. Accessed 2-11-2022 at: https://apnews.com/article/b0e0fb7b15871845b2bcf111d53a6c0c

Walla Walla Union-Bulletin, WA. “Police probe continues into shooting of family.” 7-13-1987, p. 5. Accessed 2-11-2022 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/walla-walla-union-bulletin-jul-13-1987-p-5/

— 10  The Oklahoman (A. Thornton). “Band’s Plane Goes Down; 3 Sooners Die.” 7-6-1987.

— 10  United Press International. “Montana Air Crash Kills Band.” Chicago Tribune, 7-6-1987.

 

Narrative Information

 

July 6, UPI: “Lakeside, Mont. — A twin-engine plane carrying the regional country-western band Montana crashed and burned a path through pine trees on a hillside in northwestern Montana, killing all 10 people aboard, officials said Sunday. It was the worst private plane crash in Montana history.[1]

 

“Victims of the Saturday night accident, which occurred shortly after takeoff from Kalispell, included six musicians who had played at a 4th of July party and were en route to Idaho for an evening show; their manager; the 12-year-old son of a band member; the pilot of the Beechcraft-18 and his girlfriend. The band members were identified as Curt Bergeron, Spokane, Wash.; Clifford Tipton, Reno, Nev.; Allen Larson, Tulsa, Okla.; Grady Whitfield, Salt Lake City; Terry Robinson, Kalispell; and Dale Anderson of Ft. Benton, Mont. Tipton`s son, Dallas, was killed along with the band’s manager, Tom Sawan of Missoula, Mont., and Jean Lemery of Couer d’Alene, Idaho, a friend of the pilot. The identity of the pilot was withheld pending notification of his parents…. [Joe Taylor[2]]

 

“The crash in an apple orchard on the west shore of Flathead Lake a half-mile south of the tiny community of Lakeside occurred at 8:05 p.m., said Corky Derby, spokeswoman for the Flathead County Sheriff’s Department.

 

July 6, The Oklahoman: “Lakeside, Mont…. The Oklahomans were identified Sunday as Cliff Dean Tipton, 32, lead guitarist, fiddle player and vocalist for The Montana Band; his son, Dallas Curtis Tipton, 11, of Newcastle; and another band member, Allan Larson of Tulsa….

 

“The band had just finished playing a Fourth of July private engagement in Lakeside and was en route to another show in Post Falls, Idaho, when the plane went down at 9:05 p.m. CDT Saturday, said Corky Derby, spokeswoman for the Flathead County sheriff’s office. The crash occurred on the side of a hill about 300 yards from the shore of Flathead Lake.

 

“Scores of boaters and lakeside residents witnessed the crash. Some said the plane buzzed over the lake seconds before it crashed and exploded Saturday night. “They buzzed one of the boats on the lake. It looked like they knew somebody in the boat. They came over low and waggled their wings,” Virgil Deppmeier of Los Altos, Calif., told The Associated Press….

 

“The other crash victims were identified as pilot Joe Taylor of Athol, Idaho; his friend, Jean Bernadine Lemery of Coeur d’Alene, Idaho; band manager Tom Sawan of Missoula; sound manager Dale Anderson of Fort Benton; and band members Kurt Bergeron, Spokane, Wash.; Grady Whitfield, Salt Lake City; and Terry Robinson, Whitefish.

 

“Formerly known as the Mission Mountain Wood Band, the group changed its name to The Montana Band in 1980 and worked out of Reno, Nev. The band had played the Reno-Tahoe casino showroom circuit for more than a decade and also played colleges, nightclubs, state fairs and rodeos across the country….” (The Oklahoman (Anthony Thornton). “Band’s Plane Goes Down; 3 Sooners Die.” 7-6-1987.)

 

Sources

 

The Oklahoman (Anthony Thornton). “Band’s Plane Goes Down; 3 Sooners Die.” 7-6-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://newsok.com/article/2191512

 

United Press International. “Montana Air Crash Kills Band.” Chicago Tribune, 7-6-1987. Accessed 11-4-2016 at: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1987-07-06/news/8702190223_1_pilot-band-montana

 

 

 

 

 

 

[1] There had been, though, 8 as deadly or deadlier commercial and military aviation events.

[2] The Oklahoman (Anthony Thornton). “Band’s Plane Goes Down; 3 Sooners Die.” 7-6-1987.

—  18  Casa Grande Dispatch, AZ. “14 border crossers die in desert.” 5-24-2001, p. 1.

—  18  Cliniclegal.org. Chaos on…U.S.-Mexico Border…Report on Migrant…Deaths… p. 13.

—  18  Los Angeles Times. “18 Suspected Aliens Die in Locked Boxcar.” 7-3-1987.

 

Narrative Information

 

2001, Casa Grande Dispatch: “The worst known crossing tragedy on the entire U.S.-Mexican border during the past 20 years was the deaths of 18 illegal immigrants who suffocated in a boxcar in Sierra Blanca, Texas, 90 miles east of El Paso.” (Casa Grande Dispatch. “14 border crossers die in desert.” 5-24-2001, 1.)

 

Cliniclegal.org: “On July 2, 1987, at Sierra Blanca, 18 undocumented immigrants perished in a 120-degree railroad car.” (Cliniclegal.org. Chaos on the U.S.-Mexico Border: A Report on Migrant Crossing Deaths, Immigrant Families and Subsistence-Level Laborers, p. 13.)

 

July 3, AP/LA Times: “Sierra Blanca, Tex (AP) — Eighteen suspected illegal aliens trapped in a locked, steel-walled boxcar were found dead in stifling 120-degree temperatures Thursday in what authorities called a botched smuggling effort.  One man survived the 14-hour ordeal by using a spike to punch a hole through the floor and breathing through the opening, said Mike Williams, a spokesman for the U.S. Border Patrol in El Paso.  “They appear to have gotten excessively hot. Some appeared to have gone into convulsions . . . and they were dehydrated,” said William Harrington, assistant chief patrol agent for the Border Patrol.

 

“The aliens had boarded an eastbound Missouri Pacific freight train Wednesday afternoon at El Paso, about 90 miles northwest of Sierra Blanca on the Texas-Mexican border, Williams said. They apparently were making their way to the Dallas-Fort Worth area.  The freight train apparently stayed on a siding Wednesday night and was delayed for some mechanical problem, he said.

 

“Williams said the temperature in the boxcar probably exceeded 120 degrees and the victims apparently died from the heat. The bodies were found Thursday morning during a routine Border Patrol inspection of boxcars.  “It is definitely an organized smuggling effort,” Williams said. “Possibly one of the smugglers was planning on riding the train on the outside, in a different boxcar, with the idea of opening it up the first chance they stopped. But we haven’t got that far yet.  “Obviously, it was a terrible and tragic mistake to do this, and we are working on trying to find out who that individual was from the survivor,” he said.

 

“Two guides and a smuggler accompanied the aliens, Williams said.  The guides, also believed to be illegal aliens, got into the boxcar and the third man locked it from the outside, he said.

 

“The survivor, Miguel Tostada-Rodriguez, 21, of the Mexican state of Aguas Calientes, was given medical treatment in the town of Van Horn and was being questioned by Border Patrol agents.

 

“Harrington said government agents might never positively identify the dead, who were believed to be men in their 20s or 30s.  “They were, from their outward appearance, illegal aliens. But there is no way for us to be totally sure, because they don’t carry any identification,” he said.

 

“Clothing was scattered around the boxcar, making the process of identification even more difficult, officials said.

 

“Harrington said aliens usually use El Paso freight yards to leave the border area. “It is not uncommon to find aliens in a boxcar,” he said. “But we just don’t find them locked inside.”

 

“In April, 1984, five Salvadorans were killed and six other aliens seriously injured as they were being led by smugglers on a forced march on a narrow railroad trestle near Kingsville, Tex. A train drove through the group, forcing them to fall or jump 30 feet into a shallow creek to avoid being hit.”  (Los Angeles Times. “18 Suspected Aliens Die in Locked Boxcar.” 7-3-1987.)

 

Sources

 

Casa Grande Dispatch, AZ. “14 border crossers die in desert.” 5-24-2001, p. 1. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/casa-grande-dispatch/2001-05-24/page-1/

 

Cliniclegal.org. Chaos on the U.S.-Mexico Border: A Report on Migrant Crossing Deaths, Immigrant Families and Subsistence-Level Laborers. Accessed 2-6-2012 at: http://cliniclegal.org/sites/default/files/atrisk5_0.pdf

 

Los Angeles Times. “18 Suspected Aliens Die in Locked Boxcar.” 7-3-1987. Accessed 2-6-2012 at:  http://articles.latimes.com/1987-07-03/news/mn-1042_1_illegal-aliens

 

 

 

 

 

–10 Aviation Safety Network. US Army UH-1H Iroquois crash, Fort Hood TX, 22-Jun-1987.
–10 Big Spring Herald, TX. “10 die in helicopter crash.” 6-23-1987, p. 3A.

Narrative Information

Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database:
“Date: 22-Jun-1987
….
“Type: Bell UH-1H Iroquois
“Owner/Operator: United States Army Aviation
“Registration: 67-17621
….
“Fatalities: Fatalities: 10 / Occupants: 10
….
“Location: Fort Hood, TX
….
“Narrative: Crashed during exercise “Starburst 87”. Low-level orientation flight of
reservists.”

Newspaper

June 23: “Fort Hood – Officials at Fort Hood say an annual two-week training exercise will go on, despite the deaths of 10 Army reservists in a helicopter crash. A low-flying helicopter participating in massive Texas National Guard and Army Reserve maneuvers crashed near the base’s western boundary Monday, killing everyone aboard….

“About 13,000 Texas National Guard 49th Armored Division members and 5,000 soldiers of Army reserve support units from 20 states have been participating in the combat-readiness exercise called ‘Starburst ‘87’ since June 13. In continues through this weekend. The part-time soldiers, who meet for light training at least once a month, are using more than 75 of the Guard’s helicopters and 600 of its tanks and armored personnel carriers in one of its largest-ever maneuvers.

‘Guard officials said the crash of the UH-1 Huey helicopter was the deadliest in recent memory to befall the Texas National Guard.

“Four of the victims, all crew members, were from the 353rd Engineer Group in Oklahoma City and the other six, who were passengers in the helicopter, were from the 489th Engineer Battalion based in Little Rock, Ark., said Maj. William Coleman, spokesman for the Guard’s 49th Armored Division.

“The U.S. Army early today identified six of the 10 victims. The names of the others were being withheld pending notification of relatives… A second helicopter on the scene whisked away one of the victims to Darnall Army Community Hospital on the Army base, but he died about an hour after the 9:45 a.m. crash, military officials said.

“Army officials say the helicopter was on an orientation flight and was slightly above tree-top level when it went down in a flat, grassy area surrounded by rocky slopes and trees. The chopper apparently erupted in flames on impact, leaving a tangle of charred metal that hampered investigators’ efforts to remove the bodies. The last victim was removed almost four hours after the crash….”(Big Spring Herald, TX. “10 die in helicopter crash.” 6-23-1987, p. 3A.

Sources

Aviation Safety Network, Flight Safety Foundation, Database. US Army UH-1H Iroquois crash, Fort Hood TX, 22-Jun-1987. Accessed 7-24-2023 at: https://aviation-safety.net/wikibase/77027

Big Spring Herald, TX. “10 die in helicopter crash.” 6-23-1987, p. 3A. Accessed 7-24-2023 at: https://newspaperarchive.com/big-spring-herald-jun-23-1987-p-3/

–~388  Blanchard tally of State Breakouts below.

—  338  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).[2]

—  >96  AP. “East Gets Relative Relief…Hot Spell,” Daily News-Record, VA, 7-18-1995, p. 3.[3]

 

Summary of Heat Deaths by State

 

Alabama                         10                    North Carolina            6

Arizona                           11                    Ohio                                  4

Arkansas                       21                    Oklahoma                       6

California                     20                    Oregon                            4

Connecticut                  2                    Pennsylvania               53

District of Columbia   3                    South Carolina            8

Florida                           24                    South Dakota                5

Georgia                         24                    Tennessee                       7

Hawaii                             1                    Texas                              23       

Idaho                               1                    Utah                                  1

Illinois                          16                    Vermont                        3

Indiana                          11                    Virginia                         14

Iowa                               15                    Washington                   3

Kansas                            5                    West Virginia                1

Kentucky                      8                    Wisconsin                      2

Louisiana                     4                    Wyoming                      >1

Maine                              1

Maryland                       8

Massachusetts             1

Michigan                        3

Minnesota                     3

Mississippi                  10

Missouri             25-~28

Montana                         1

Nebraska                       2

Nevada                           2

New Hampshire          1

New Jersey                    5

New York                      6

Breakout of Heat Fatalities by State

 

Alabama                     ( 10)

–10  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Bullock County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Butler County. Male, 45-54.[4]

–1  Calhoun County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Colbert County. Male, 65-74

–4  Jefferson County. Males 45-54 and 55-64; females, 65-74 and 85+.

–1  Mobile County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Walker County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Winston County. Male, 55-64.

 

Arizona                      ( 11)

–11  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–5  Maricopa County. Males, 25-34 (2), 65-74, and 85+; female 25-34.

–1  Mohave County. Male 10-14.

–1  Navajo County. Female, 65-74.

–1  Pinal County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Yavapai County. Female, 25-34.

–2  Yuma County. Male 15-18, and female, 75-84.

 

Arkansas                    ( 21)

–21  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

Breakout of Arkansas Heat Fatalities by Locality:

—  1  Chicot County. Female, 75-84. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  1  Conway County. Male, 65-74. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  1  Craighead County. Male, 65-74. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  1  Crawford County, Van Buren, Aug 4. Excessive heat; male, working outdoors.[5]

—  1  Franklin County. Female, 45-54. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  1  Fulton County. Male, 75-84. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  2  Garland County. Female, 45-54 and male, 85+. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code.

—  1  Grant County, July 29. State Hwy. Dept. worker collapsed in high heat and died.[6]

—  1  Independence County, Batesville, July 27. Hyperthermia; female, 77 in 109° trailer.[7]

—  1  Jefferson County, Pine Bluff, July 4. Heatstroke; male, 57, while in route to hospital.[8]

—  1  Jefferson County, Pine Bluff, July 30. Heatstroke; male, 77.[9]

—  1  Jefferson County, Pine Bluff, Aug 6. Excessive heat; female, 79, in home.[10]

—  1  Lee County. Male, 55-64.

—  1  Mississippi County. Female, 55-64.

—  2  Phillips County. Female, 55-64 and female, 75-84.

—  1  Poinsett County. Male, 75-84.

—  1  Sebastian County, near Lavaca, about Aug 5. Excessive heat; female in her mobile home.[11]

—  1  Sebastian Co. Female, 65-74. CDC Wonder, shows two female deaths in this age range.[12]

—  1  Van Buren County, Clinton, Aug 4; Excessive heat; male, 33.[13]

 

California                   ( 20)

–20  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

—  1  Bakersfield, Sep 3. Heatstroke; male oil and gas field worker, unacclimated to high heat.[14]

—  2  Imperial County. Males, age not noted. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 (excessive heat).

—  8  Los Angeles County. Males, 10-14, 35-44 (2), 45-54, 65-74; females, 1-4, 15-19, 65-74.[15]

–1  El Monte, Oct 3. Girl, 2, after getting into family car ~1 hour in “stifling” heat.[16]

—  1  Merced County. Female, 75-84. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  1  Orange County. Male, 25-34. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  2  Riverside County. Male, 25-34 and female, 75-84. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code.

—  1  San Bernardino County. Female, 25-34. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 (excessive heat).

—  2  San Diego County. Males, 55-64 and 65-74. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 (excessive heat).

—  1  Sonoma County. Male, 45-64. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

—  1  Tulare County. Male, 35-44. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

 

Connecticut                (  2)

— 2  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Hartford County. Female, 85+.

–1  Tolland County. Male, 45-54.

 

District of Columbia (  3)

— 3  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–Two females 65-74 and 75-84, and one male, 75-84.

 

Florida                        ( 24)

–24  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–13  Lushine (NWS). “Underreporting of Heat…Cold Related Deaths in Florida.” 1-6-2009.[17]

Breakout of Florida heat deaths by locality:

–1  Bay County. Male, 45-54. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–2  Brevard County. Male, 85+, female, 85+. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 (excessive heat).

–2  Broward County. Male, 35-44 and female, 55-64. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code.

–1  Charlotte County, Rotonda West, June 11. Heatstroke; male lumber worker. OSHA.[18]

–1  Clay County. Male, 55-64. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–4  Duval County. Males, 15-19, and 55-64; females 75-84 and 85+. CDC WONDER E900.

–1  Hillsborough County. Female, 75-84. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–1  Marion County. Male, 45-54. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–3  Miami-Dade Co. Males, 25-34 (2), and 35-44. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 excessive heat.

–1  Monroe County. Male, 55-64. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–1  Orange County. Male, 65-74. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–1  Pinellas County. Male, 65-74. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–2  Polk County. Males, 20-24 and 65-74. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

–1  Polk Co., Bartow, June 23. Heat exhaustion; male worker opening dome lids on tank cars.[19]

–2  Putnam County. Males, 45-54 and 55-64. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 (excessive heat).

–1  Putnam Co., Crescent City, Aug 9. Heatstroke; male worker pulling weeds, 100°, high humidity.[20]

–1  Sarasota Co., Sarasota, Aug 26. Heatstroke; male boat building and repair worker. OSHA.[21]

 

Georgia                      ( 24)

–24  State. Blanchard tally of locality breakouts below.[22]

–21  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Bacon County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Barrow County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Burke County. Male, 35-44

–1  Butts County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Chatham County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Cobb County. Female, 45-54.

–1  Coweta County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Fulton County. Male, 15-19.

–1  Long County. Female, 55-64.

–5  Muscogee County. Male, 45-54; females, 55-64 (3), and 75-84.

–1  Polk County. Male, 65-74.

–2  Richmond County. Males, 45-54 and 55-64.

–1  Tattnall County. Female, 45-54.

–1  Upson County. Female, 65-74.

–1  Wayne County. Female, 35-44.

–1  Wilkinson County. Female, 75-84.

–13  State. National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No’s 6-8, June-Aug, 1987.

—  1  State, June. [23]

–1  Muscogee Co., Columbus, 2^nd. Female, 63, found dead in closed-window, no-AC apt.

—  4  State, July. “Four deaths were listed as being due to the heat.” NCDC Storm Data.[24]

–1  Bibb County, Macon. Female, 74, at home.

–1  Muscogee County, Columbus. Female 82, at home.

–1  Muscogee County, Columbus. Male, 54, outside.

–1  Richmond County, Augusta. Male, 62, at home.

—  8  State, Aug. “Eight people died directly as a result of heat exhaustion or heat stroke.”[25]

–1  Bibb County, Macon, Aug 14. Female, 65.

–1  Burke County, Waynesboro, Aug 15. Male, 40.

–1  Carroll County, Villa Rica, Aug 5. Male, 61.

–1  Muscogee County, Columbus, Aug 7. Female, 62.

–1  Muscogee County, Columbus, Aug 8. Male, 84.

–1  Muscogee County, Columbus, Aug 12. Female, 60.

–1  Richmond County, Augusta. Female, 41.

–1  Upson County, Thomaston, Aug 5. Female, 74.

 

Hawaii                        (  1)

— 1  Honolulu County. Male, 25-34. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

 

Idaho                          (  1)

— 1  Ada County. Male, 85+. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

 

Illinois                         ( 16)

–16  Blanchard tally based on locality breakouts below, showing seven Chicago deaths.

–15  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–5  Cook County. Female, <1; males, 25-34, 45-54 (2), 85+.

–1  Hamilton County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Macon County. Male, 1-4.

–2  Peoria County. Females, 55-64, and 85+.

–4  St. Clair County. Females, 55-64, 75-84 (2), and 85+.

–1  Saline County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Williamson County. Female, 75-84.

—  6  Chicago (metropolitan), July heatwave. NCDC. Storm Data, V 29, N 7, July 1987, p. 36.

–3  Males.[26] Overly strenuous outdoor activities.

–1  June 14. Heatstroke; male, 55; golfing at Warren State Park; temp. 99°.[27]

–1  June 14. Heatstroke; male, 31, while running, 1200 block, West 59^th.[28]

–1  June 15. Heatstroke; male, 30 collapsed on sidewalk ~154^th and Ashland.[29]

–1  July 21. Male, 45, heatstroke and alcohol intoxication;[30] closed car in bright sun.

–2  July 1-23. Closed and overheated apartments.

–1  July 8. Heatstroke and arteriosclerosis; male, 45; outside temp. reached 90°.[31]

—  1  Chicago, July 29. Heatstroke/circulatory disease; female, 79, apt. with windows closed.[32]

 

Indiana                       ( 11)

— 11  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–2  Allen County. Males, 65-74, and 85+.

–4  Marion County. Males, 25-34, 55-64, and 65-74; female, 75-84.

–1  Morgan County. Male, 45-54.

–2  Ohio County. Male, 65-74, and female, 75-84.

–1  Orange County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Tippecanoe County. Female, 85+.

 

Iowa                            ( 15)

–15  State. Blanchard tally of locality breakouts below. (CDC figures plus NCDC for Warren.)

–14  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Boone County. Female, 85+.

–1  Cerro Gordo County. Male, 85+.

–1  Clay County. Female, 65-74.

–2  Clinton County. Male, 45-544, and female, 85+.

–1  Dallas County. Female, 45-54.

–1  Fayette County. Male 55-64.

–1  Grundy County. Female, 75-84.

–2  Marshall County. Females, 55-64, and 75-84.

–1  Marshalltown, late July. Female, 82, in her home; inside temperature ~110°.[33]

–1  Polk County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Pottawattamie County. Female, 85+.

–1  Scott County. Male, 1-4.

–1  Story County. Male, 85+.

—  4  State. NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 41, column 2.

–1  Marshall Co., Marshalltown, July 30. Heatstroke; female, elderly, in apt. with no AC.

–1  Marshall Co., Marshalltown, July 31. Heatstroke; middle-aged female, apt., no AC.

–1  Pottawattamie Co., Council Bluffs, July 31. Heatstroke; elderly female home; no AC.

–1  Warren Co., Indianola, July 30. Heatstroke and dehydration; male, elderly, outdoors.

 

Kansas                        (  5)

— 5  Blanchard tally based on locality breakouts below.

— 4  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Cherokee County. Male, 45-54.

–1  Doniphan County. Female, 85+.

–1  Meade County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Osborne County. Male, 75-84.

— 1  Wyandotte County, Kansas City, July 29, Heatstroke; female, 69, nursing home resident.[34]

 

 

Kentucky                   (  8)

— 8  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Christian County. Female, 75-84.

–2  Daviess County. Males, 55-64.

–1  Jefferson Co., Louisville, ~July 26. Female, 85; her apartment, outside high of 85°.[35]

–1  Metcalfe County. Female 65-74.

–1  Monroe County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Ohio County. Female, 55-64.

–1  Webster County. Female, 55-64.

 

Louisiana                   (  4)

— 4  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Avoyelles Parish. Male, 65-74.

–1  Caddo Parish. Male, 75-84.

–1  Vermilion Parish. Male, 35-44.

–1  West Feliciana Parish. Male, 20-24.

 

Maine                         (  1)

— 1  York Co. Male, 45-54. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

 

Maryland                   (  8)

— 8  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–6  Baltimore City. Males, <1, 35-44 (2), 55-64, and 85+; female, 55-64.

–1  Baltimore County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Montgomery County. Female, 65-74.

 

Massachusetts            (  1)

— 1  Hampden Co. Male, 20-24. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

 

Michigan                    (  3)

— 3  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Allegan County. Male, 1-4.

–1  Kent County. Female, 65-74.

–1  Wayne County. Female, 65-74.

 

Minnesota                  (  3)

— 3  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Hennepin County. Female, 65-74.

–1  Mower County. Female, 65-74.

–1  St. Louis County. Male, 75-84.

 

Mississippi                  ( 10)

— 10  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Attala County. Male, 45-54.

–2  Bolivar County. Female, 35-44; and male, 75-84.

–1  Clay County. Female, 85+.

–1  Coahoma County. Female, 85+.

–1  Hinds County. Male, 20-24.

–1  Jasper County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Jones County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Lee County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Scott County. Male, 35-44.

 

Missouri                     (25-~28)

— ~28  MO DHSS. Data & Statistical Reports. Chart: “Hyperthermia Mortality…1980-2013.”[36]

—   25  CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Cass County. Female, 55-64.

–1  Chariton County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Cole County. Male, 25-34.

–7  Jackson County. Females, 35-44, 65-74, 75–84 (2); males, 65-74 (2), 75-84.

–1  Oregon County. Female, 65-74.

–1  Pemiscot County. Female, 5-9.

–2  Pettis County. Female, 65-74, and male, 75-84.

–1  Pike County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Randolph County. Female, 75-84.

–6  St. Louis City. Males, 35-34, 65-74, 85+ (2), male, age not noted; female, 55-64.

–1  St. Louis County. Female, 75-84.

–2  Sullivan County. Female, 85+, and male, 65-74.

 

Montana                     (  1)

— 1  Fallon County. Male, 65-74. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

 

Nebraska                    (  2)

— 2  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–2  Douglas County. Females, 45-54 and 75-84.

— 1  Douglass Co., Omaha, Aug 2. Heatstroke; female, at home; daytime high of 95 degrees.[37]

 

Nevada                       (  2)

— 2  Clark Co. Male, 55-64 and female, 75-84. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat).

 

New Hampshire         (  1)

— 1  Rockingham Co. Female, 85+. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat).

 

New Jersey                 (  5)

— 5  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–2  Camden County. Female, 85+.

–1  Middlesex County. Female, 45-54.

–1  Ocean County. Female, 55-64.

–1  Passaic County. Female, 85+.

 

New York                   (  6)

— 6  State. Blanchard tally of county breakouts below (5 noted by CDC, 1 additional by NCDC).

— 5  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Bronx County. Male 65-74.

–1  New York County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Queens County. Female, 85+.

–1  Schenectady County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Ulster County. Male, 45-54.

— 1  Dutchess County, Aug 17. Heatstroke; male.[38]

 

North Carolina          (   6)

— 6  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Cabarrus County. Male, 85+.

–1  Camden County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Mecklenburg County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Perquimans County. Female, 55-64.

–1  Sampson County. Female, 1-4.

–1  Wake County. Male, 15-19.

— 5  Mirabelli/Richardson. “Heat-Related Fatalities in [NC].” AJPH, 95/4, April 2005.[39]

 

Ohio                            (  4)

— 4  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Franklin County. Male 15-19.

–2  Hamilton County. Female, 45-54, and male, 55-64.

–1  Montgomery County. Male, 35-34.

 

Oklahoma                  (   6)

— 6  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Canadian County. Male, 45-54.

–1  Carter County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Comanche Co., Lawton, July 6. Heat exhaustion; boy, 10, running outdoors; high heat.[40]

–1  Creek County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Grant County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Oklahoma County. Male, 85+.

 

Oregon                       (  4)

— 4  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Benton County. Female, 45-54.

–1  Clackamas County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Coos Co., Dellwood, June 25. Heat exhaustion; unacclimated out-of-condition lumber co. male.[41]

–1  Marion County. Male, 55-64.

 

Pennsylvania              ( 53)

— 53  Blanchard tally based on locality breakouts below — 51 eastern PA (NCDC); 2 western.

— 51  Eastern PA (mostly Philadelphia), July 19-26. Mostly elderly. NCDC Storm Data, 29/7.[42]

— 17  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–2  Allegheny County. Female, 55-64; and male, 55-64.

–1  Blair County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Bucks County. Male, 65-74.

–2  Delaware County. Male, 20-24; and female, 55-64.

–1  Lackawanna County. Female, 20-24.

–1  Lehigh County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Montgomery County. Female, 85+.

–1  Northumberland County. Male, 75-84.

–4  Philadelphia County. Male, 45-54; females, 75-84 (2), 85+.

–3  York County. Females, 65-74, and 75-84.

—     1  Doylestown, Buck County, July 24. Heatstroke; male, 67.[43]

—     2  Homer City, Indiana County, Aug 21. Boy 1, sister, 2, left by parents in car.[44]

— ~50  Philadelphia, late July. (According to Philadelphia Med. Examiner’s Office.)[45]

 

South Carolina          (   8)

— 8  Blanchard tally based on county breakouts below (6 noted by CDC and 2 others by NCDC).

— 6  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Aiken County. Male, 45-54.

–1  Edgefield County. Male, 45-54.

–2  Richland County. Female, 75-84; and male, 75-84.

–2  York County. Males, 35-44, and 45-54.

— 1  Greenville County, Taylor, July 22. Heat exhaustion; male, 69, placing fan in home attic.[46]

— 1  Greenwood County, Edgefield, June 24. Heat exhaustion; male (James A Robinson).[47]

 

South Dakota             (  5)

— 5  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Haakon County. Male, 85+.

–1  Minnehaha County. Female, 85+.

–1  Pennington County. Female, <1.

–1  Spink County. Female, 65-74.

–1  Ziebach County. Male, 76-84.

 

Tennessee                   (  7)

— 7  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Crockett County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Fentress County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Haywood County. Female, 85+.

–1  Humphreys County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Knox County. Female, 45-54.

–2  Shelby County. Male, 55-64; and female, 65-74.

 

Texas                          ( 23)

–23  Blanchard tally based on county breakouts below (21 noted by CDC; 2 others by NCDC).

–21  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Atascosa County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Burnet County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Cameron County. Female, 75-84.

–2  Cass County. Male, 45-54; and female, 65-74.

–1  Childress County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Eastland County. Male, 45-54.

–1  El Paso County. Male, 55-64.

–1  Fort Bend County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Jasper County. Male, 45-54.

–1  McLennan County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Midland County. Male, 35-44.

–1  Milam County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Tarrant County. Male, 55-64. (We assume this refers to more detailed NCDC report).

–2  Travis County. Male, 45-54; and female, 65-74.

–1  Victoria County. Male, 45-54.

–1  Webb County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Williamson County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Young County, Male, 85+.

–1  Zavala County. Male, 85+.

—  3  National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, P. 54, columns 1-2.

–1  Dallas Co., Aug 15. Hyperthermia; male, 82, home with windows and doors shut.[48]

–1  Dallas Co., Aug 15. Hyperthermia; male, 43; home, in room with 100° temperature.[49]

–1  Tarrant Co., Fort Worth, Aug 4. Heatstroke; male, 58; home, windows/doors shut.[50]

 

Utah                            (  1)

— 1  Salt Lake County. Male, <1. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

 

Vermont                     (  3)

— 3  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Bennington County. Male, 75-84.

–1  Chittenden County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Washington County. Male, 20-24.

 

Virginia                      ( 14)

— 14  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Caroline County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Charles City County. Male, 25-34.

–1  Chesapeake City. Male, 65-74.

–1  Franklin County. Male, 45-54.

–1  Henrico County. Male, 25-34.

–1  King and Queen County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Montgomery County. Male, <1.

–1  Petersburg City. Male, 25-34.

–4  Richmond City. Females, 20-24, and 35-44; and males 25-34, and 75-84.

–1  Virginia Beach City. Male, 65-74.

–1  York County, Male, 65-74.

 

Washington                (  3)

— 3  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Kitsap County. Female, 75-84.

–1  Pacific County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Thurston County. Male, 1-4.

 

West Virginia            (  1)

— 1  Wood Co. Male, 55-64. CDC Wonder. ICD-10 E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

 

Wisconsin                   (  2)

— 2  State. CDC WONDER. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia).

–1  Milwaukee County. Male, 65-74.

–1  Outagamie County. Male, 75-84.

 

Wyoming                    ( >1)

— >1  UPI (Peter Rowe). “A blazing heat wave blamed for at least 67…” 8-1-1987.[51]

 

Narrative Information

 

July 25, UPI: “A stifling heat wave blamed for at least seven deaths sent temperatures soaring to record highs from the Rocky Mountains to Maine Friday [July 24] and trapped so much pollution over the nation’s capital that the government warned breathing was ‘unhealthful.’

 

“High temperature records were broken in 18 cities across 12 states and the District of Columbia. It was a record 97 degrees at Washington-Dulles International Airport and a record 94 in New York City. A 100-degree reading in Macon, Ga., failed to set a record….

 

“The heat wave has left three dead in Georgia, two in Indiana and one each in South Carolina and Chicago over five days, authorities said.

 

“Temperatures averaged about 10 degrees above normal in 35 states, with the worst heat along the Atlantic Coast, Pete Reynolds of the weather service said….

 

“A 95-degree reading tied a record in Philadelphia, where the cool fountains in Logan Square in downtown Philadelphia were packed with children seeking relief….

 

“Record temperatures were broken or tied in New York, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Maryland, West Virginia, Maine…Rhode Island, Virginia, Florida, Arizona, Colorado and the District of Columbia.” (UPI. “Heat Wave Linked to Seven Deaths.” The Cumberland News, MD, 7-25-1987, p. 1.)

 

Sources

 

Altoona Mirror, PA. “66 deaths blamed on heat.” 8-1-1987, p. B2. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/altoona/altoona-mirror/1987/08-01/page-10?tag

 

Associated Press, Homer City, Pa. “Community outraged at children’s deaths.” Daily Intelligencer/Montgomery County Record, Doylestown, PA, 8-25-1987, p. 6. Accessed 11-0-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/doylestown/doylestown-intelligencer/1987/08-25/page-46?tag

 

Associated Press. “East Gets Relative Relief From Hot Spell,” Daily News-Record, Harrisonburg, VA, 7-18-1995, 3. Accessed at: http://newspaperarchive.com/fullpagepdfviewer?img=150579771&sterm

 

Associated Press (Howard Goldberg). “Nation in throes of hot, cold.” Indiana Gazette, Indiana, PA. 10-5-1987, p. 1. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/indiana/indiana-gazette/1987/10-05?tag

 

Associated Press (Howard Goldberg). “Thunderstorms Break Heat Wave in East.” The Progress, Clearfield, PA. 7-27-1987, p. 10. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/clearfield/clearfield-progress/1987/07-27/page-10?tag

 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics. Compressed Mortality File 1979-1998. CDC WONDER on-line Database, compiled from Compressed Mortality File CMF 1968-1988, Series 20, No. 2A. ICD-10 Codes search for E900 (Excessive heat – hyperthermia). Accessed 11-7-2016 at: https://wonder.cdc.gov/controller/datarequest/D16;jsessionid=759F1FD7E97072794185D02B96185AA9

 

Chicago Tribune (Constanza Montana) “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1987-07-24/news/8702240057_1_heatstroke-temperatures-wisconsin-department

 

Intelligencer/Montgomery County Record, Doylestown, PA. “End of heat wave in sight” (Cont. from A1). 7-26-1987. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/doylestown/doylestown-intelligencer/1987/07-26/page-86?tag

 

Lushine, James B. “Underreporting of Heat and Cold Related Deaths in Florida.” Miami, FL: National Weather Service Weather Forecast Office, NOAA. 1-6-2009 modification. Accessed 11-1-2015 at: http://www.srh.noaa.gov/mfl/?n=fla_weather_casualties

 

Mirabelli, Maria C. and David B. Richardson. “Heat-Related Fatalities in North Carolina.” American Journal of Public Health, Vol. 95, No. 4, April 2005, pp. 635-637. Accessed 9-2-2015 at: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1449233/

 

Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services. Data & Statistical Reports. Chart: “Hyperthermia Mortality, Missouri 1980-2013.” DHSS. Accessed 11-19-2015 at: http://health.mo.gov/living/healthcondiseases/hyperthermia/data.php

 

National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 6, June 1987. Asheville, NC: NCDC, NOAA, 88 pages. Accessed 11-5-2016 at: http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-BA9BBAAE-4A60-4591-B27D-935D68657A0C.pdf

 

National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987. Asheville, NC: NCDC, NOAA, 100 pages. Accessed 11-5-2016 at: http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-D3790C89-097B-4265-95F3-4F017A3A1D1E.pdf

 

National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987. Asheville, NC: NCDC, NOAA, 68 pages. Accessed 11-6-2016 at: http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-F03C8543-F96D-4AC9-B362-FF327655ABF1.pdf

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101743045 — Southern Truss & Building Supply, Inc.” Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=101743045

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101744399 — Farmland Hydro, Limited Partnership. Wash., DC: Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=101744399

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101210193 — Paul D. Causey.” Washington, DC: OSHA. Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=101210193

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101256402 — Union Camp Corp., Building Products Div.” Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=101256402

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101271534–Wellcraft Marine Corp.” Washington, DC: OSHA. Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=101271534

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101531325 — Advanced Production Service, Inc.” Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=101531325

 

Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 105325013 — Weyerhaeuser Co.” Washington, DC: OSHA. Accessed 11-6-2016 at: https://www.osha.gov/pls/imis/establishment.inspection_detail?id=105325013

 

The Capital, Annapolis, MD. “Woman dies in Sweltering room.” 7-30-1987, A2. Accessed 11-10-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/maryland/annapolis/annapolis-capital/1987/07-30/page-3?tag

 

United Press International (Peter Rowe). “A blazing heat wave blamed for at least 67…” 8-1-1987. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://www.upi.com/Archives/1987/08/01/A-blazing-heat-wave-blamed-for-at-least-67/7248554788800/

 

United Press International. “Heat Wave Linked to Seven Deaths.” The Cumberland News, MD, 7-25-1987, p. 1. Accessed 11-10-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/maryland/cumberland/cumberland-news/1987/07-25?tag

 

United Press International. “State residents are steaming over recent rise in mercury.” New Castle News, PA, 8-4-1987, p. 1. Accessed 11-9-2016 at: http://newspaperarchive.com/us/pennsylvania/new-castle/new-castle-news/1987/09-04?tag

[1] Does not include 18 illegal immigrants who died of dehydration and heat in locked RR car, Sierra Blanca, TX.

[2] CDC-Wonder results relate only to cases where hyperthermia was coded ICD-9/E900 as primary (direct) cause of death by a medical examiner on a death certificate. “Heat-related” deaths are viewed as those where heat was an indirect or contributing cause of death, and are not included. Even with what we would view as a direct E900.0 heat death we know that sometimes such deaths are coded as something else – such as a dehydration in the case of a child left in a hot car, or heart-failure brought on by a heat stroke, and thus do not show up in a exposure to excessive heat query. Also, CDC WONDER suppresses (does not show) fatality numbers in a State where the loss of life is less than 10, though presumably these figures are incorporated into the U.S. total figure.

[3] “The death toll [over 300, week of July 11-17, 1995] topped that of 1987, when at least 96 deaths from the Plains to the East Coast were blamed on heat….”

[4] OSHA also notes a Butler County death of a male — in Chapman on July 14, when a worker pulling wood from a conveyer belt, suffered a fatal heatstroke. (OSHA. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101256402 — Union Camp Corp.”) We assume OSHA and CDC are noting the same death.

[5] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 23, col. 1. CDC WONDER notes the death of a male, 65-74.

[6] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 29, col. 2. CDC WONDER notes death of Male, 45-54.

[7] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 29, col. 2. CDC WONDER notes death of female, 75-84.

[8] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 29, col. 1. OSHA also notes the July 4^th death of a male in Pine Bluff — that of a fuel house worker — though it is noted he died “en route to his residence.” CDC WONDER notes death of male, 55-64.

[9] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 29, col. 2. CDC WONDER notes death of male 75-84.

[10] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 23, col. 2. CDC WONDER shows three total deaths for Jefferson County, as does the NCDC. The CDC, though, shows two deaths of males, 75-84, while the NCDC shows two deaths in that age range — one a male and the other a female.

[11] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 23, col. 2. CDC WONDER notes death of female, 65-74.

[12] We assume the other was the female in her mobile home near Lavaca.

[13] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 23, col. 1. CDC WONDER notes death of male, 25-34.

[14] OSHA. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101531325 — Advanced Production…” CDC Wonder notes one Kern County (Bakersfield is in Kern) — a male, 55-64.

[15] CDC WONDER. ICD-10 E900 code (excessive heat).

[16] Assoc. Press (Howard Goldberg). “Nation in throes of hot, cold.” Indiana Gazette, Indiana, PA. 10-5-1987, p. 1. Notes that on Oct 3 “…Los Angeles peaked at 108 for a second-consecutive day…surpassing the record of 100 degrees set in 1933.”

[17] Figure 3, “Annual Temperature Deaths, Florida, 1979-1999.” Figure 3 is a chart which shows heat deaths in one color and cold deaths in another on the same horizontal bar for each year. The fatality range shown on the left of the chart is in increments of five, going up to thirty. The bars for each year are shown diagonally and do not show any numbers. This does not make them readily readable. Thus one has to measure with a ruler the bar showing the lowest combined deaths (1979), which appears to show one cold death and one heat death. With the unit of measurement of one death then measured against the heat portion of all the other bars, one can get an approximation of the heat deaths for each year. I say “approximate” in that by this method we counted 133 heat deaths over the 21-year period included in the graph, whereas the text of the article notes that there were 125. Repetitious measurement attempts gave us the same result. The article notes that the data came from death certificates collected by the Public Health Statistics Section, Office of Vital Statistics, Florida Department of Health and Rehabilitative Services.

[18] OSHA. Fatality…Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101743045 — Southern Truss & Building.” CDC WONDER also notes the death of a male, 45-54.

[19] OSHA. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101744399 — Farmland Hydro, Ltd.” Highlighted in yellow to note not included in tally in that we assume this refers to one of the two CDC-noted deaths.

[20] OSHA. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101210193 — Paul D. Causey.” Highlighted in yellow to note not included in tally in that we assume this refers to one of the two CDC-noted deaths.

[21] OSHA. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 101271534 — Wellcraft Marine Corp.” CDC WONDER notes one Sarasota County heat death — a male, 35-44.

[22] Difference with CDC number is (1) the NCDC has six deaths in Muscogee County, whereas the CDC notes five;  (2) the NCDC shows two Bibb County deaths — that of a female, 74, in her home in July, and that of a 65 year-old female in Macon (Bibb County) on Aug 14 — whereas the CDC shows no Bibb County deaths; and (3) the NCDC notes the death of a male, 61, Aug 5 in Villa Rica, Carroll County, whereas the CDC shows no Carroll Co. deaths.

[23] NCDC, NOAA. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 6, June 1987, p. 32. Noted as “Heat” under Character of Event.

[24] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 33, col. 1. Asheville, NC. Writes: “Above normal temperatures were common across Georgia during the month. Hundreds of people were treated for heat-related illnesses.”

[25] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 25, col. 2.

[26] Chicago Tribune. “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Cites County Medical Examiner Of.

[27] Chicago Tribune. “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Cites County Medical Examiner Of. Identified victim as Albert Barnitz. Notes temperature reached 99° at O’Hare Airport.

[28] Chicago Tribune. “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Cites County Medical Examiner Of. Identified victim as Sylvester Sims.

[29] Chicago Tribune. “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Cites County Medical Examiner Of. Notes this location as in Harvey, a suburb of Chicago. Identified victim as Leon McGregory.

[30] Chicago Tribune. “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Cites County Medical Examiner Of. Identified the victim as Richard Werbek and the location of the car at 19^th Avenue and Rice Street in Melrose Park.

[31] Chicago Tribune. “Lingering Heat Wave Blamed in 5 Deaths.” 7-24-1987. Cites County Medical Examiner Of. Identified victim as Wayne C. Ferlo, and apartment location as 2411 S. Western Avenue.

[32] The Capital, Annapolis, MD. “Woman dies in Sweltering room.” 7-30-1987, A2. Writes: “Chicago — An elderly woman, described as so terrorized by burglars that she kept all of her windows closed and a length of pipe by her bed, died of circulatory disease and heat stroke in her sweltering apartment. The body of Louise Radatz, 79, was found yesterday in the apartment she had refused to leave since a purse-snatching 1½ months earlier…’She had all the windows sealed in last week’s heat…It must have been 125 degrees in there when we found her.’ [according to niece].”

[33] Altoona Mirror, PA. “66 deaths blamed on heat.” 8-1-1987, p. B2.

[34] United Press International (Peter Rowe). “A blazing heat wave blamed for at least 67…” 8-1-1987. Identified victim as Edna Hamilton, who died at St. Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City, MO. Writes “The temperature inside the home, which lacks air conditioning, was 90 degrees Wednesday, said for a spokesman for the home.” Notes also that “Besides the Kansas fatality, the blistering heat…has been blamed on…deaths in…Missouri and South Dakota.”

[35] AP (H. Goldberg). “Thunderstorms Break Heat Wave in East.” The Progress, Clearfield, PA. 7-27-1987, p.10. Cites Jefferson County Deputy Coroner. CDC WONDER also notes the heat death of a female, 85+, in the county.

[36] This is a table, with deaths, measured in increments of ten on the left margin, and years, 1980-2013 on the bottom. Dots representing deaths, are placed on a line traced from 1981 to 2013. In that the increments are of ten on a small chart, one has to guestimate deaths, when a “dot” does not land squarely on a line.

[37] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 39, col. 1. Notes the 2^nd was 15^th consecutive day of 90+°.

[38] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 43, col. 2. Notes “Local power companies exceeded all-time record electrical demand on this date…”

[39] Figure 1.

[40] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 72, col. 2. CDC simply notes death of one male, 10-14.

[41] OSHA. Fatality and Catastrophe Investigation Summaries. “Inspection: 105325013 — Weyerhaeuser Co.” Writes the employee “…was setting chokers with 4 other employees. It was a hot day with very little or no wind. Employee…was out of condition for this type of work and not used to working in hot weather. He was overcome…” Upon arrival, via helicopter, at a hospital he was pronounced death with a core body temperature of at least 108°. CDC Wonder simply notes the death of one male, 20-24 age range in the county.

[42] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 74, col. 1. Writes: “Temperatures climbed to 90° or higher over most of Eastern Pennsylvania for 8 consecutive days. At least 51 heat-related deaths were reported, 50 of them in Philadelphia…mostly elderly people.”

[43] Intelligencer/Montgomery County Record, Doylestown, PA. “End of heat wave in sight” (Cont. from A1). 7-26-1987. Identifies victim as Charles E. Drew. Highlighted in yellow to denote not included in tally — assume reference to CDC Wonder noted Bucks County heat death of a male, 65-74.

[44] AP. Homer City, Pa. “Community outraged at children’s deaths.” Daily Intelligencer/Montgomery County Record, Doylestown, PA, 8-25-1987, p. 6. Writes the mother, 19, and husband, 23, were arrested and charged with involuntary manslaughter and reckless endangerment, noting: “They were accused of leaving their children, Calvin, 1, and Kristle, 2, in the car from 9 a.m. until 2:15 p.m., Friday, when Mrs. Shields [mother] found the boy dead of heat exposure and dehydration and the girl gasping. Kristle died of heat exposure Saturday in a Pittsburgh hospital.”

[45] UPI. “State residents are steaming over recent rise in mercury.” New Castle News, PA, 8-4-1987, p. 1. Notes: “The Philadelphia Medical Examiners’ office said some 50 people — most of them elderly — died during a string of hot days in late July.”

[46] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 7, July 1987, p. 76, col. 1. Identifies victim as John P. Redman.

[47] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 6, June 1987, p. 63.

[48] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 54, col. 2. Cites Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office.

[49] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 54, col. 2. Cites Dallas County Medical Examiner’s Office.

[50] NCDC. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 8, Aug 1987, p. 54, col. 1. Notes his body temperature reached 110 degrees.

[51] “…blistering heat that has hovered over much of the Midwest and East for two weeks has been blamed on 50 deaths in Philadelphia alone, and additional deaths in Indiana, Illinois, South Carolina, Georgia, Whoming, Missouri and South Dakota.”

— 30  Aguirre, et al. Saragosa, Texas Tornado May 22, 1987… Natural Disaster Studies, V3, p.1.

— 30  Alexander, Bill (Lubbock WSFO).  “The Saragosa, Texas Tornado, May 22, 1987.”

— 30  CDC. “Tornado Disaster–Texas.”  Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Aug 5, 1988.

— 30  Grazulis.  Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 1278.

— 30  NCDC. Storm Events Database. Tornado, F4, TX, Reeves County, 5-22-1987, 16:16 CST.

— 30  National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 5, May 1987, p. 57.

 

–Female, 1, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 24, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 25, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 30, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 30, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 31, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 33, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 46, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 48, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 49, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 69, Guadalupe Hall.

–Female, 71, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 1, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 1, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 1, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 25, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 27, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 28, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 35, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 53, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 54, Guadalupe Hall.

–Male, 57, Guadalupe Hall.

 

–Female, 46, mobile home.

–Female, 63, mobile home.

–Female, 77, mobile home.

–Male, 70, mobile home.

 

–Female, 2, frame house.

–Female, 14, frame house.

–Female, 34, frame house.

 

–Female, 17, vehicle.

 

–29  Aguirre. “The lack of warnings before the Saragosa tornado.” IJMED, March 1988, 65.[1]

 

Narrative Information

 

Alexander: “At 8:15 pm, May 22, 1987, the small community of Saragosa, Texas was devastated by a violent multiple-vortex tornado. Of the 183 inhabitants, 30 were killed and 121 injured. The tornado touched down on the west side of town, completely enveloping everything within the town as it curved toward the north. The tornado had a very short path length but was just over a half-mile wide, striking an isolated community in otherwise sparsely populated ranchland.”  (Alexander)

 

CDC: “On May 22, 1987, between 8:15 p.m. and 8:20 p.m., Saragosa, Texas, was devastated by a violent, multiple-vortex tornado, with winds of 207-260 mph. Saragosa is an unincorporated Hispanic community of 5 200-415 persons located in sparsely populated Reeves County (population 16,300) in southwest Texas. The tornado inflicted widespread damage throughout the town. The worst damage occurred in the residential and business areas where structures were totally destroyed. Many automobiles were hurled several hundred feet into buildings and homes. One hundred three families incurred severe economic losses.

 

“Thirty people were killed and 131 injured. Among the destroyed buildings was a community hall in which about 80 persons had gathered for a graduation ceremony for preschool children; 22 persons died and approximately 60 were injured inside this hall. Three persons in a frame home, four in mobile homes, and one in an automobile also died. Five of the decedents were less than 5 years of age, three were 5-16 years, 17 were 20-59 years, and four were over the age of 60. The mean age at death was 37 years.

 

“Persons with minor injuries were treated on the site; others were referred to five hospitals in nearby communities. Most victims (93 casualties and 31 hospital admissions in less than 8 hours) were treated 30 miles away in Pecos at the hospital closest to Saragosa. Most injuries consisted of contusions, lacerations, and fractures. Some wounds became infected because of dust and soil contamination and insufficient first aid. In addition to the 131 injuries associated with the immediate impact of the tornado, many postimpact injuries were sustained by residents or emergency workers. These injuries included sunburn, heat exposure, lacerations, cuts, puncture wounds, fingers crushed with hammers, and animal bites. The American Red Cross also reported several stress-related medical conditions, such as hypertension and diabetic reactions due to failure to take insulin….

 

“A severe thunderstorm watch was in effect on May 22, 1987, for Reeves County from 3:45 p.m. to 10:00 p.m., and beginning midafternoon local television stations displayed a severe thunderstorm watch symbol. The National Weather Service (NWS) Office at Midland issued a tornado warning for south and central Reeves County at 7:54 p.m. This warning was partly based on reports of forming tornadoes from NWS-trained storm spotters. Local radio and TV stations promptly broadcasted the warning. The radio station in Pecos broadcasted the warning in both English and Spanish.

 

“Although the graduation exercise attendees did not hear the broadcast of the NWS warning, they were warned of the approaching tornado by a person who had stepped outside and spotted it. Despite some confusion, during the 1-2 minutes before the tornado hit, many persons demonstrated knowledge of tornado safety by taking proper protective action. Parents removed the kindergarten children from the stage and placed them under tables and benches next to the walls. Parents also used themselves as shields to protect their children. The open structure of the community hall made these actions the only options for safety. Some persons considered leaving the hall but remembered safety rules advising against being in the open or in vehicles in a tornado. None of the 4- and 5-year-old children participating in the graduation exercise were killed.

 

“The NWS issued the tornado warning for the area 20 minutes before the tornado hit, but the town did not have a warning siren. Even if a siren had been activated, there was no preidentified shelter in this community or county, and the community hall might have been considered one of the safest structures. Most housing structures were not built to withstand high wind, and walls were constructed of wood, bricks, adobe, or unreinforced concrete. The numbers of injuries and deaths were high (an estimated 70% of persons in the swath of the tornado were injured) probably because of the lack of shelters and protective housing….” (CDC. “Tornado Disaster — Texas.” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 37, No. 30, pp. 454-456, 461, 8-5-1988.)

 

Grazulis: “TX  MAY 22, 1987 1916 30k 121 inj 1000y 3m F4.  REEVES — Moved NNE from 2m SW of Saragosa, passing through and virtually wiping out that town, destroying 61 homes, which was about 85% of the town. It first destroyed a farm house and scattered outbuildings, then intensified at the edge of Saragosa and grew to a half mile in width. Over 100 utility poles were snapped, and vehicles were hurled through adobe and wood-frame buildings. Some vehicles were found as much as 900 feet from where they had been parked. Twenty-two of the 30 deaths occurred in one building, Guadalupe Hall, where many people had gathered at a graduation ceremony for Head Start children. The building was totally destroyed, with only the foundation remaining. Several infants were killed, but most of the dead were parents or grandparents of the children. None of the Head Start children died. Many survived because parents shielded them from debris with their bodies, costing the adult his or her life. Four other deaths occurred in trailers, and three in frame houses. One person was killed as he tried to outrun the tornado in a car. Shortly after leaving Saragosa, the tornado lifted. $1,300,000.”  (Grazulis.  Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991. 1993, p. 1278.)

 

NCDC: “The supercell that produced…golfball-sized hail at Balmorhea produced a violent multiple vortex tornado that destroyed the community of Saragosa. The tornado essentially wiped the community of 183 people off the map, killing 30 and injuring 121 more. More than 85 percent of the structures in town were totally destroyed.

 

“The tornado began just north of Interstate 10, two miles south-southwest of Saragosa, as a strong single-vortex tornado. It moved through farmland, destroying a farm house and scattering out-buildings. As the storm entered Saragosa it rapidly became a large multiple vortex tornado, just over a half-mile wide. The path crossed over and enveloped almost all the residential and business district of the town, inflicting F3 and F4 damage….Autos and trucks were hurled through adobe and wood-frame structures, with some found as much as 500 feet from the point of origin.

 

“Tragically, of the 30 fatalities, 22 were in a single building, Guadalupe Hall, watching a graduation ceremony for Head Start four-year-olds. Most of those who died were parents or grand-parents of the Head Start children; none of the Head Start children died. Several others were infants a year old or younger. Many of the four-year-olds survived because parents shielded them from debris with their bodies, costing the adult his or her life. Four other fatalities occurred in mobile homes, while only 3 were in frame houses. Another died trying to outrun the tornado in an automobile.

 

“Shortly after the twister ripped through the community it lifted.”

 

Sources

 

Aguirre, Benigno E., et al. Saragosa, Texas Tornado May 22, 1987: An Evaluation of the Warning System (Natural Disaster Studies, Vol. 3).  Wash., D.C: National Academy Press, 1991. [Can be accessed for free by registering on National Academy Press website at: https://www.nap.edu/catalog/1766/saragosa-texas-tornado-may-22-1987-an-evaluation-of-the ]

 

Aguirre, Benigno E. “The Lack of Warnings Before the Saragosa Tornado.” International Journal of Mass Emergencies and Disasters, Vol. 6, No. 1, pp. 65-74, March 1988.  Accessed at:  http://www.udel.edu/DRC/Aguirre/publications/ag30.pdf

 

Alexander, Bill (Lubbock WSFO). “The Saragosa, Texas Tornado, May 22, 1987.” Stormtrack, 9-30-1987. Accessed at:  http://www.stormtrack.org/library/1987/saragosa.htm

 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Tornado Disaster — Texas.” Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, Vol. 37, No. 30, pp. 454-456, 461, 8-5-1988. Accessed 11-10-2016 at:  http://www.cdc.gov/MMWR/preview/mmwrhtml/00001072.htm

 

Grazulis, Thomas P. Significant Tornadoes 1680-1991: A Chronology and Analysis of Events. St. Johnsbury, VE: Environmental Films, 1993.

 

National Climatic Data Center. Storm Data, Vol. 29, No. 5, May 1987. Asheville, NC: NOAA, NCDC. Accessed 11-10-2016 at: http://www1.ncdc.noaa.gov/pub/orders/IPS/IPS-C82AE1F4-3ECC-4465-A977-B5A717B11E59.pdf

 

National Climatic Data Center. Storm Events Database. Tornado, F4, TX, Reeves County, 5-22-1987, 16:00 CST. Accessed 11-10-2016 at: http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/stormevents/eventdetails.jsp?id=10143353

 

 

 

[1] The fatality number is incorrect. Noted in that this is an informative social science article.

— 37  Lednicer. “Intrusions, Overflights, Shootdowns and Defections…Cold War…” 4-16-2011.

— 37  Naval Historical Center. “FAQs…Casualties: U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Personnel…”

— 37  US Navy. “This Day in Naval History — May 17.”

— 37  US Navy, Navy News Service. “USS Stark Sailors Remembered.” 5-19-2010.

 

Narrative Information

 

Lednicer: “17 May 1987 The USS Stark (FFG-31), operating in the Persian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq war, was struck by two Exocet anti-ship missiles fired from an Iraqi Air Force Mirage F1. The frigate did not detect the incoming missiles with radar and warning was given by a lookout only moments before the missiles struck. The first missile penetrated the ship’s hull on the port side. Its warhead failed to detonate, but the missile spewed flaming rocket fuel in its path. The second missile entered the hull at almost the same point, and left a large gash before exploding in the crew’s quarters. Thirty-seven sailors were killed and twenty-one were injured.”  (Lednicer. “Intrusions, Overflights, Shootdowns and Defections…Cold War…” 4-16-2011 rev.)

 

US Navy: “1987 – USS Stark (FFG-31) is struck by two Iraqi Exocet Missiles in the Persian Gulf, killing 37 Sailors and wounding 21.” (USN. “This Day in Naval History — May 17.”)

 

US Navy: “While deployed to the Arabian Gulf, the USS STARK is hit by two Iraqi Exocet missiles but only one of them detonates. Both missiles were accidentally fired by an Iraqi F-1 Mirage aircraft, killing 37 sailors and wounding 21 others. The pilot later claims that he had mistaken the STARK for an Iranian oil tanker.

 

“The STARK suffers heavy damage and could only be saved by the effective damage control efforts of the crew.

 

“After the incident a discussion about the efficiency of the Phalanx CIWS, the SLQ 32 and the Mk 92 Fire Control system started because none of the frigate’s system detected the incoming missiles. An AWACS plane monitoring the area also did not detect the missiles but only the Iraqi fighter aircraft….

 

“The Navy spent $142 Million to repair the USS STARK….” (USN. USS Stark (FFG 31).

 

US Navy News Service: “Mayport, Fla. (NNS) — Naval Station Mayport hosted a memorial ceremony May 17 to honor 37 Sailors killed aboard the guided-missile frigate USS Stark (FFG 31) 23 years ago. On May 17, 1987, while on patrol in the Persian Gulf, tragedy struck in the night when, without warning, two Iraqi missiles slammed into the side of Stark. Despite the severe damage inflicted, Stark’s crew, aided by equipment and fire fighting teams from other units, saved the ship by fighting the fire through the night and into the next day….”

 

Sources

 

Lednicer, David. “Intrusions, Over-flights, Shoot-downs and Defections During the Cold War and Thereafter.” 4-16-2011 revision. Accessed 2-20-2012 at: http://myplace.frontier.com/~anneled/ColdWar.html

 

Naval Historical Center. “Frequently Asked Questions,  Casualties: U.S. Navy and Marine Corps Personnel Killed and Wounded in Wars, Conflicts, Terrorist Acts, and Other Hostile Incidents.”  Washington DC:  Dept. of the Navy. Accessed 11-11-2016 at:  http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/AMH/AMH-USNchron.htm

 

United States Navy. “This Day in Naval History — May 17.” Accessed 11-11-2016 at: http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=759

 

United States Navy. USS Stark (FFG 31). Accessed 11-11-2016 at: http://www.navysite.de/ffg/FFG31.HTM

 

United States Navy, Navy News Service. “USS Stark Sailors Remembered.” 5-19-2010. Accessed 11-11-2016 at: http://www.navy.mil/submit/display.asp?story_id=53446

 

 

 

 

 

— 28  Carper and Feld. Construction Failure. 1997, p. 9.

— 28  Delatte. Beyond Failure: Forensic Case Studies for Civil Engineers.  2009, p. 107.

— 28  Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting.  L’Ambiance Plaza.

— 28  Grant, Ellsworth S. “Houses of Cards,” Chap. 6 in Connecticut Disasters, 2006, p. 171,

— 28  Ward.  “It was Gone: String of Problems Led to 51 Deaths at Willow Island.” 4-27-2008.

 

Narrative Information

 

Carper and Feld: “L’Ambiance Plaza, Bridgeport, Connecticut, April 1987. A 16-story post-tensioned prestressed concrete lift-slab apartment project collapsed suddenly during construction, resulting in 28 deaths.” (Carper and Feld.  Construction Failure. 1997, p. 9.)

 

Delatte: “The death of 28 workers in the April 23, 1987, construction collapse of the L’Ambiance Plaza building in Bridgeport, Connecticut, triggered a massive rescue effort and several investigations. Unfortunately, to this day the true cause of the collapse remains in dispute because a settlement ended all inves­tigations. This was a lift-slab project…. [p. 107]

 

“At the time of the collapse, the building was a little more than halfway completed. In the west tower, the 9th, 10th, and 11th floor slab package was parked in stage IV directly under the 12th floor and roof package… The shear walls were about five levels below the lifted slabs (Cuoco et al. 1992).[1]

 

“The workers were tack-welding wedges under the 9th-to-11th floor package to temporarily hold them in position, when a loud metallic sound followed by rumbling was heard. Kenneth Shepard, an ironworker who was installing wedges at the time, looked up to see the slab over him ‘cracking like ice breaking.’ Suddenly, the slab fell onto the slab below it, which was unable to support this added weight and fell in turn. The entire structure collapsed, first the west tower and then the east tower, in 5 s, only 2.5 s longer than it would have taken an object to free fall from that height. Ten days of frantic rescue operations revealed that 28 construction workers had died in the collapse, making it the worst lift-slab construction accident ever. Kenneth Shepard was the only one on his crew to survive (Levy and Salva­dori 1992).[2]….

 

“All of these theories are plausible, but what triggered the collapse? The answer may never be known. A two-judge panel mediated a universal settlement among 100 parties, closing the L’Ambiance Plaza case. Twenty or more separate parties were found guilty of ‘widespread negligence, careless­ness, sloppy practices, and complacency.’ They all contributed, in varying amounts, to the $41 million settlement fund. Those injured and the fami­lies of those killed in the collapse received $30 million. Another $7.6 mil­lion was set aside to pay for all of the claims and counterclaims among the designers and contractors of L’Ambiance Plaza.

 

“Although this settlement kept hundreds of cases out of court and pro­vided rapid closure to a colossal collapse, it also ended all investigations prematurely, leaving the cause of collapse undetermined (Korman 1988).[3] Fortunately, many of the investigators subsequently published their findings (Feld and Carper 1997).[4] [p. 118] ….

 

“The L’Ambiance Plaza collapse highlighted several procedural deficien­cies. Responsibility for design was fragmented among so many subcontrac­tors that several design deficiencies went undetected. If the engineer of record had taken responsibility for the overall design of the building or a second engineer had reviewed the design plans, these defects probably would have been detected (Heger 1991).[5] Also, standardized step-by-step procedures for lift-slab construction should be established to ensure the safety of the con­struction workers. A licensed professional engineer should be present during construction to ensure that these guidelines are followed (Kaminetzkv 1991).[6]

 

“According to Zallen and Peraza, three structural engineers should he involved in the design and construction of a lift-slab building. These are the structural engineer of record, the lift-slab engineer, and the post-tensioning engineer. The structural engineer of record is responsible for the integrity of the building in its completed state. The lift-slab engineer, hired by the lift-slab con­tractor, designs the lift-slab process, including structural stability during lifting operations. The post-tensioning engineer details the tendons and related details and must coordinate carefully with the lift-slab engineer. All three engineers must coordinate their work carefully (Zallen and Peraza, 2004, pp. 62-63).[7] [p. 119] ….

 

“This failure severely reduced the use of the lift-slab system and almost eliminated it from use (Moncarz and Taylor 2000, p. 46)….”[8] [p. 121] (Delatte. Beyond Failure, 2009.)

 

Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting: “On April 23, 1987, 28 construction workers were killed when the 16-story L’Ambiance Plaza apartment building in Bridgeport, Connecticut collapsed during construction. Though the collapse has been studied by several prominent engineering teams and has been the subject of intense debate in the engineering community, there has been no consensus regarding details of the root cause. Exponent was retained on behalf of the concrete placement subcontractor to investigate the failure.

”The two adjacent towers of the building were being cast in a stack at grade level and then jacked up along steel columns into their final position. At the time of the collapse, slabs 3, 4, and 5 of the east tower had been placed into final position, and slabs 9, 10, and 11 for the west tower had just been lifted. A hydraulic jack was being used to plumb the two towers when both towers suddenly and completely collapsed. Because hard evidence was destroyed during rescue operations and because of the large number of deficiencies with the building construction, it is impossible to pinpoint one distinct reason for collapse.” (Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting.  L’Ambiance Plaza.)

 

Ward: “…28…workers died in the collapse of the L’Ambiance Plaza, a 16-story apartment complex in Bridgeport, Conn. That disaster occurred on April 23, 1987…”  (Ward 2008.)

 

Sources

 

Carper, Kenneth L. and Jacob Feld. Construction Failure.  John Wiley & Sons, Inc., 1997. Partially digitized by Google. Accessed 11-11-2016 at: http://books.google.com/books?id=-jnlb-oJxcEC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_v2_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q=&f=true

 

Delatte, Norbert J. Jr.  Beyond Failure: Forensic Case Studies for Civil Engineers (pp. 107-121). Reston, VA:  American Society of Civil Engineers Press, 2009.

 

Exponent Engineering and Scientific Consulting.  L’Ambiance Plaza. Accessed 8-8-2009 at:  http://www.exponent.com/lambiance_plaza/

 

Grant, Ellsworth S. “Houses of Cards,” pp. 169-174 (Chapter 6) in Connecticut Disasters: True Stories of Tragedy and Survival. Globe Pequot Press, 2006.

 

Ward, Ken Jr. “It was Gone: String of Problems Led to 51 Deaths at Willow Island.” WVGazette.com, 4-27-2008. Accessed at:  http://wvgazette.com:80/News/WillowIsland/200804250422

 

 

 

 

 

[1] D. Cuoco, D. Peraza, and T. Scarangello. “Investigation of L’Ambiance Plaza Building Collapse,” Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, Nov, 1992, pp. 211-230.

[2] Matthys Levy, and Mario. Salvador. Why Buildings Fall Down: How Structures Fail. NY: W.W. Norton, 1992.

[3] R. Korman. “Mediated settlement seeks to close the book on L’Ambiance Plaza.” Engineering News-Record, Nov 1988.

[4] Jacob Feld and Kenneth L. Carper. Construction Failure (2^nd ed.). NY: John Wiley & Sons, 1997.

[5] Frank J. Heger. Engineering.com, “L’Ambiance Plaza.” Posted 10-24-2006 at: http://www.engineering.com/Library/ArticlesPage/tabid/85/PageID/182/ArticleID/168/articleType/ArticleView/Default.aspx

[6] Dov Kaminetzky. Design and Construction Failures: Lessons from Forensic Investigations. NY: McGraw-Hill, 1991, pp. 78-85.

[7] Rubin M. Zallen and David B. Peraza. Engineering Considerations for Lift-slab Construction. American Society of Civil Engineers Publications, 2004.

[8] Piotr D. Moncarz and R. Taylor. “Engineering Process Failure — Hyatt Walkway Collapse.” Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities, Vol. 14, No. 2, pp. 46-50, 2000.