Bee Careful; Preventing Bee and Wasp Stings

Bee and wasp stings are a common summer nuisance that can turn deadly if the victim develops a severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis). Public Health experts estimate that up to 3% of adults will have a severe systematic reaction to a wasp or bee sting. Anyone who works or recreates outdoors is at risk of being stung.

Helpful Tips to Avoid Being Stung

• Yellowjackets and wasps become aggressive when searching for food–keep garbage cans covered with tight-fitting lids and away from picnic and camping activity areas.
• Keep food covered
• Serve sweetened drinks in covered containers
• Check food and beverage before eating. Clear away food items after a meal immediately
• Eliminate water sources such as birdbaths and dripping faucets, which attract bees and wasps
• Wear proper foot protection. Require campers and students to wear shoes at all times.
• Remain calm and still when a wasp is in close proximity or lands on you
• Avoid wearing hairsprays, perfumes, colognes, suntan lotion, or brightly colored clothes outdoors
• Mow carefully–be observant ahead of the mower if there is a wasp nest on the lawn

Bee or wasp sting symptoms that warrant immediate medical attention include:

• Coughing or wheezing
• Problems breathing or swallowing, or having tightness in your throat
• Changes to your skin, such as breaking out into hives
• Feeling lightheaded or dizzy, or fainting
• Vomiting or diarrhea

Access CIRMA’s online portal for more important employee training and education on relevant seasonal topics.

In Connecticut, occupational exposure to tick-borne diseases is a recognized hazard. Outdoor workers must protect themselves in the spring, summer, and fall when ticks are most active.

School and Parks & Rec departments should be hyperaware of the danger to students and children participating in summer camp or other outdoor sports activities.

Those who are at particular risk include: 
– Parks and recreation employees,
– Public works employees,
– Summer camp counselors,
– Animal control officers,
– Athletic coaches and teachers, and
– Police officers and firefighters

Ticks in Connecticut can carry a variety of disease-causing agents, including bacteria, protozoa, rickettsia, and the rare but fatal Powassan Virus.

Tick-Borne Diseases Identified in Connecticut: 
– Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi),
– Human granulocytic anaplasmosis (Anaplasma phagocytophilum),
– Babesiosis (Babesia microti),
– Ehrlichiosis(Ehrlichia chaffeensis),
– Rocky Mountain spotted fever (Rickettsia rickettsii),
– Powassan encephalitis(POWV), and
– Hard-tick relapsing fever (Borrelia miyamotoi).

While the number of human cases of these diseases in Connecticut remains low, the infection may have serious consequences. Without preventive measures in tick-infested areas, contracting a tick-borne illness in Connecticut, particularly Lyme disease, is entirely plausible.

All public sector employees required to work in tick-infested areas should know how to protect themselves and their coworkers from tick bites and the signs and symptoms of Tick-borne Disease. For information on workplace controls and Lyme Disease symptoms, download NIOSH Fast Facts. In addition, CONN-OSHA’s Safety and Health Consultation Program is available to help Connecticut employers with this initiative.

Read more about this issue in the CONN-OSHA quarterly.

Download CIRMA’s Tail Gate topic on Ticks and Lyme Disease.

Access CIRMA’s online portal for more important employee training and education tools and resources on relevant seasonal topics.