Guard member dies on border duty

[Suzie]

Guard member dies on border duty

<!-- END HEADLINE --> <!-- BEGIN STORY BODY --> 2 hours, 2 minutes ago

A Pennsylvania National Guard member died after collapsing during a training mission in the 100-plus degree heat of the Arizona-Mexico border, a guard spokesman said Friday.
Spc. Kirsten Fike was two hours into the first day of a border surveillance mission when she collapsed on Wednesday. She died the next day, guard spokesman Capt. Cory Angell said.
Angell said the guard has not yet determined the cause of death.


MORE HERE (http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20060811/ap_on_re_us/national_guard_border_death)

[DeclinetoState]

Probably heat stroke or something similar.

[Wolfcounsel]

If one is not well hydrated, or well-nourished, it is not a good idea to frolic in the desert in the blazing sun.

--from "Wolf Counsel's Survival Book"

(not really)


It's going to hit her loved ones hard. I'd say she had a heat stroke also. May she rest in peace.

[Suzie]

Isn't 2 hours a little quick to dehydrate? Especially on the first day, if she had been there a week and not drinking enough water, but she was 2 hours into the first day. :(

[Wolfcounsel]

"Especially on the first day, if she had been there a week and not drinking enough water, but she was 2 hours into the first day." --Suzie

For some reason, some people do not like to drink water, or just any water. If they are told to hydrate themselves correctly, they will take some sips. Other than that, they might drink some carbonated beverages or coffee and say that they drink plenty of liquids. WRONG! Sufficient water, even hot water, will do a better job in your body than the coldest 32 ounce bottle of Coke. If you're running with a canteen or two with you, and you feel thirsty, don't Rambo out. Drink!

We still need to wait and find out what happened to the woman.

[Beowulf]

Isn't 2 hours a little quick to dehydrate? Especially on the first day, if she had been there a week and not drinking enough water, but she was 2 hours into the first day. :(
If she went into her duty dehydrated then it's very possible this happens.

[Suzie]

I wonder what her physical make up was like. I see a lot of females that couldn't possibly meet height and weight standards. Of course I don't know that to be the case here but when my husband was in college he spent more than one Army School carrying his gear and a females because they were not in good shape for a woman, much less keep up with young fit males. A woman has to work a lot harder to get in shape than a man does and with full time jobs which most Guard members have it gets tough to meet the same standards that active duty members meet, yet that's what is required of them. They don't get time everyday for PT like active troops do, but they still have to meet the requirements of an active soldier.

[Wolfcounsel]

Women in general are not made to keep up with men in general. Still, a lot of them think it's possible. However, that has nothing to do with her condition, unless it's certain she was in poor training, poorly hydrated, stressed out. Anything could have led to her death.

[Suzie]

True. It will be interesting to see what they find caused it. I guess they would have been able to tell if it was a heart attack.

[Rhino]

I was tempted to say PMS, but that would have been tasteless, so I didn't.

[Wolfcounsel]

"I was tempted to say PMS, but that would have been tasteless, so I didn't." --Rhino

Good thing, too. PMS is fatal only sometimes to the other party. I call it Periodic Monster Syndrome.

[DesertFox]

Good a place as any to die. My, my.

Not the best way to go, though, Joe.

Arizona heat dries you out before you even know what's going on. NOBODY should come out here and train in the sun without at least a week of lighter effort in that same sun to accustom yourself to how quickly you dehydrate. People walk around in the sun thinking they're fine, and all of a sudden they stagger and don't even realize it. Heat injury hits hard and sudden here because it's so dry. Your skin itches after the first day and it takes awhile to stop. You sweat, but it evaporates so quickly that you think you're not sweating so it can't be all that bad. It is.

[Lubbock]

Dead after two hours?

Just a guess: there's more to this than meets the eye.

[Suzie]

They say the ACU's are cooler than the BDU. But I don't know what she had.

[Timberwolf]

She should have been hydrating herself 3-4 days BEFORE her first stint...and to the tune of her body weight in ounces of water (150 lbs = 150 ozs of water) every day.

Up here in the norther plains, the humidity is higher and we can SEE the sweat running off our bodies. We need to drink slightly less water only because it rarely gets over 100ºF for more than a day or two. In AZ, it gets there in June and stays there 'til August or September (with few exceptions).

When the heat gets over 85ºF drink 1 oz of water for every 2-3 lbs of body weight (bare minimum) and adjust it upwards from there depending on how active ya are. Once it gets over 90º start at 1 oz/2 lbs...once it's over 100º do the 1-1.

[Wolfcounsel]

"...and to the tune of her body weight in ounces of water (150 lbs = 150 ozs of water) every day." --Timberwolf

That's about a gallon and a half for 150 pounds, isn't it?

[dPrasse]

Sounds pretty close to right , WC ... takes lots of water .... I drank close to 2 gal/day when making hay in the summer ...

DF , I know what you're talking about ... last summer I loaded furniture in Phoenix ... the temp was 119 ... My eyes burned , skin felt nasty ... I was looking for some of my N.IL humidity ! :D

[Timberwolf]

"...and to the tune of her body weight in ounces of water (150 lbs = 150 ozs of water) every day." --Timberwolf

That's about a gallon and a half for 150 pounds, isn't it?
Yes sir, it is...couple weeks ago, I drank a gallon and a half in 4 hours while playing golf in 90º - 95º heat and didn't take a leak until 2 hours after I was done playing (I weigh about 180)...the next day (same conditions), I drank 2 gallons in the same time frame and had to relieve myself twice on the back 9. I figure I was getting enough on day 2.

Hydration is "Job ONE" when the heat gets up there.

[DesertFox]

It's good to drink a lotta water and stuff, too.

[Suzie]

Well she doesn't appear to be overweight. SOURCE (http://news.yahoo.com/photo/060811/480/aad7a402363a4a13b4dfbfd9776e3b80/print;_ylt=AhX.4NCHo3SY6FbVnQ5UnCZsaMYA;_ylu=X3oDM TA3bXNtMmJ2BHNlYwNzc3M-)

[omegatrump]

Is she the first military person to die in defense of our borders this year?

[Suzie]

Apparently she was sick from something else.

Autopsy: Pa. Guardsman had an 'elevated' temperature Kirsten Fike died after being sent on border-patrol duty in Ariz. (http://rds.yahoo.com/S=53720272/K=Kirsten+Fike/v=2/SID=e/l=NSR/R=1/;_ylt=A9htfMNyJudEcQYBgR7QtDMD;_ylu=X3oDMTBjMHZkMj ZyBHBvcwMxBHNlYwNzcg--/SIG=15lf09jlt/EXP=1156085746/*-http%3A//www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/news/local/states/pennsylvania/counties/philadelphia_county/philadelphia/15274529.htm?source=rss&channel=inquirer_philadelphia) The Philadelphia Inquirer - Aug 15 12:36 AM
INQUIRER STAFF WRITER An autopsy done over the weekend on the body of Pennsylvania Army National Guard soldier Kirsten Fike showed her temperature to be "significantly elevated" when she collapsed while on duty, a medical official said yesterday

[Wolfcounsel]

It turned up "some preliminary information" pointing toward heat exposure, Parks said, but he was unwilling to pinpoint that as the cause of death until more study is done.
"We need to get organs under the microscope and the toxicology results before we can say. I don't want to guess," Parks said in a telephone interview from Pima County. --from Suzie's link above

I think someone wants to tack on some more money on to his bill. The woman died because of the heat. My opinion.