July 23, 2005 – 6 p.m. Saturday in Bakersfield
Memorial service for Salud Zamudio Rodriguez,
farm worker who died last week from the heat
A memorial service for the second Kern County farm worker in less than a year to die from exposure to extreme heat will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday at a Bakersfield mortuary before his body is transported to Mexico for burial. Joining family and friends of Salud Zamudio Rodriguez, 42, at the service will be members of the United Farm Workers of America.
In the wake of Zamudio’s death, UFW President Arturo Rodriguez on Monday asked Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issue an emergency regulation to prevent further tragedies. The union is also urging legislators to pass a UFW-sponsored heat illness prevention bill now in the state Senate.
Zamudio was stricken Wednesday, July 13, while working in a bell pepper field near Arvin. He died a short time later at Mercy Hospital in Bakersfield. It was 105 degrees that day. Giumarra vineyards grape picker Asuncion Valdivia, 53, died from the heat on July 28, 2004.
The UFW is asking the governor for a regulation similar to AB 805, by Assemblymember Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park). The union-backed bill would require the state to adopt standards calling on growers to prevent, recognize and provide for immediate and appropriate medical treatment of heat illness suffered by workers. It would also mandate access to shaded rest areas, if feasible, and adequate hourly rest breaks during heat waves and other conditions when the risk of heat illness is high. Foremen and supervisors would be trained in spotting heat illness, providing first aid and summoning emergency medical care.
Who: Family and friends of Salud Zamudio Rodriguez, UFW Vice Presidents Lupe Martinez and Gustavo Aguirre, farm workers union members.
What: Memorial service for the second Kern County farm worker in a year to die from the heat.
When: 6-8 p.m., Saturday, July 23, 2004.
Where: Ruckers Mortuary, 301 Baker St., Bakersfield, CA 93305
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