Keeping ag workers safe in triple digit heat in the Valley

TULARE COUNTY, Calif. (KFSN) -- Farmers across the Central Valley are juggling schedules while working around excessive heat to ensure crops aren't impacted.

"We knew the heat was coming, and it's here now," said Matthew Watkins, president of the Tulare County Farm Bureau.

Watkins says farmers across the Central Valley are bracing for triple digits.

He says the big priority is ensuring employees are safe under the sun and crops continue thriving.

"Utilizing the water that mother nature has given us this year to keep the crops growing and protected," Watkins explained.

In Tulare, James Olson is a second-generation farmer who owns an agriculture business on the corner of Road 248 and 140.

They grow multiple tree nuts, vegetables, and fruit.

"We are just starting summer stuff. Summer squash, cucumbers, tomatoes are starting, and melons that just started yesterday," said James Olson, owner of Olson Trading Company.

He says sizzling temperatures require a lot of juggling, like shifting work schedules to help keep his team of about a dozen safe.

"We change our hours, some people work at night, and those who work during the day can come in super early," said Olson.

Meanwhile, the owner of Del Bosque Farms in Firebaugh says they're on day three of harvesting watermelons but says keeping employees safe during dangerous heat is at the top of his mind.

"We have plenty of water for them, shade for them to rest in. If it's really hot, we take more breaks, and if it's extreme, we stop and go home," explained Joe Del Bosque, owner of Del Bosque Farms.

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