A postal worker died Saturday while working in the Dallas area, marking the second death of a North Texas U.S. Postal Service worker in recent years.
Jacob Taylor, 51, was pronounced dead around 5:30 p.m., and the cause of death is pending, according to the Dallas County Medical Examiner. It’s not clear if Taylor’s death was heat related. Saturday’s temperatures had reached into the 90s.
Taylor’s death is currently under investigation, a USPS spokesperson told KERA News Thursday.
“The Postal Service is deeply saddened by the loss of life suffered recently involving a Dallas Letter Carrier,” USPS said. “Our thoughts are with his family, friends and colleagues at this time. This incident remains under investigation by the Postal Service, and we do not have any further comment at this time.”
Brian Renfroe, president of the National Association of Letter Carriers testified before Congress earlier this week, where he began his testimony by honoring Taylor before emphasizing the job hazards letter carriers face, including extreme heat and crime.
Renfroe called for more protections for USPS workers.
“The mail cannot be protected if the people who deliver it are not safe,” Renfroe said. “When postal workers are safe, whether from heat, crime, or anything else, the Postal Service is stronger, more efficient, more reliable and can better serve the American people.”
Taylor’s death comes roughly two years after another USPS letter carrier, Eugene Gates, died while working in extreme heat. His cause of death was confirmed to be heat and heart disease. OSHA later fined USPS more than $15,000, and the incident led to calls for the Postal Service to equip its vehicles with air conditioning.
Also in 2023, a McKinney-based delivery driver died from heat exhaustion when temperatures had reached over 100 degrees.
Christopher Begley, a UPS veteran of nearly 30 years, was making deliveries in Farmersville when he passed out at a customer’s home. He was later hospitalized and died four days later.
UPS told WFAA in 2024 Begley died of coronary conditions, arguing "the autopsy report found no connection between Chris’s death and his last day of work which was several days before he became hospitalized and died from coronary conditions."
Last year, a UPS delivery driver fainted from alleged heat exhaustion and crashed his vehicle while working one afternoon when the weather had risen up to 102 degrees.
Workers and other labor union members held a rally a few days later, where they called on the company to change heat safety protocols.
Penelope Rivera is KERA's breaking news reporter. Got a tip? Email Penelope Rivera at privera@kera.org.
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