Christopher Begley: UPS driver dies after collapsing on delivery route amid brutal Texas heatwave
TEXAS: Christopher Begley, a 57-year-old veteran UPS driver who was reportedly working in the city of Farmersville in 100-degree temperatures, died Monday, August 28.
The UPS driver reportedly died after becoming ill during a severe heat wave in North Texas, according to the company and a union leader.
Begley informed UPS that he wasn't feeling well while delivering in the Farmersville neighborhood on August 23, according to a statement from the delivery firm.
The maximum temperature that day was 101 degrees, according to ABC affiliate WFAA-TV.
How did Christopher Begley die?
Christopher Begley died after collapsing inside a business while making a delivery during a heat wave in Texas.
Begley, "a father of two and a loving husband" who fainted outside a customer's place on Wednesday, was hospitalized on Sunday and died on Monday, Dave Reeves, president of Teamsters Local Union 767, which represents UPS drivers, said, as per Dallas Morning News.
Staff immediately went to check on Begley, making sure he had water and was resting in a “cool environment,” a UPS spokesperson told New York Post.
The company also said staff offered Begley medical attention, but he declined it "multiple times."
"He told us he had recovered and asked to be taken home," the UPS spokesperson said, adding he had the rest of the day off.
Additionally, he received some of the required vacation days from the employer, who claimed to have been informed about his hospitalization on Sunday and his death on Monday.
"We are cooperating with the authorities as they continue to investigate the cause of death," UPS mentioned in their statement.
"We train our people to recognize the symptoms of heat stress, and we respond immediately to any request for help," the statement added.
Was Begley rushed to the hospital immediately?
Reeves told WFAA-TV that UPS still needs to provide Begley's family "some answers as to what happened on his final day with the company."
He also questioned why Begley, a 28-year industry veteran, wasn't sent to the hospital right away.
His cause of death will be determined by an autopsy, according to Fox station KDFW.
What was UPS' deal with Teamsters Union?
Begley's death occurred a little over a month after UPS and the Teamsters Union came to an agreement that would require the business to give drivers better working conditions, like installing air conditioning in delivery vans, as per CBS News.
GoFundMe launched for Christopher Begley's family
Begley was described as "a father of two and a loving husband" on a GoFundMe page. He was "looking forward to retirement," the page said.
According to his family, he "started delivering packages for UPS in 1995," the statement continued, adding that he "hoped to retire in the next few years."
On Thursday, the page had roughly $1,000 in donations.
How hot will Texas be in 2050?
By 2050, Texas would experience 30 to 50 more days with temperatures over 95 degrees, even under a moderate emissions scenario, which a number of climate scientists now consider to be more plausible than higher scenarios, reports The Washington Post.