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| Beating the heat (July 10, 2007) As an oppressive heat wave extends across the US, IRE and NICAR have compiled resources, including tipsheets, stories, databases and more, for journalists covering related issues. In addition to those on this page, please also visit our page about wildfires. Databases Heat is a hot topic in newsrooms. IRE and NICAR offer several relevant databases to provide hard facts dealing with the heat. OSHA Workplace Safety Data The OSHA workplace safety database includes many instances of death or injury related to heat on the job. The data consists of inspections in all states and U.S. territories from 1972 into January 2006. The databases includes company names, penalties, type of accident or injury, and severity. Details include the person's gender, age, extent of injury, nature of injury and source of injury. Storm Events This is the official U.S. government database of storm events around the country. The data are collected by more than 120 National Weather Service forecast offices. The database is archived by the National Climatic Data Center. Some of the events tracked are: excessive heat, tornadoes, hurricanes, tropical storms, droughts, snowstorms, flash floods, hail, wild/forest fires, temperature extremes, strong winds, fog, and avalanches. Fields in the database include: date and time the storm event began; event type; states and counties hit; latitude and longitude if applicable; property and crop damage; and injuries and fatalities. Mortality The mortality multiple cause-of-death database contains detailed information found in U.S. standard death certificate records from the United States and its territories. The data include information on heat-related causes, as well as detailed information about the deceased. Some of these details include the decedent's age, race, sex, marital status at the time of death and much more. Specific information about the circumstances of each death is included, such as whether it was a natural death, an accident, occurred in the workplace, or was a suicide. This data traces locations by offering such details as the deceased's state of birth, state of residence as well as the state where the death occurred. Geographic information is complete for areas with population of 100,000 or more, and includes counties, cities and MSAs. SBA Disaster Loans Several areas have already been declared disasters because of the excessive heat. The SBA disaster loan data give detailed information about who is getting loans because of certain disasters. The data detail loans made to businesses and individuals as disaster assistance. The data identifies the borrower, the disaster, the amount and, for business borrowers, whether the loan was paid in full or deemed uncollectible. The data include loans since 1980 and are current through fiscal year 2005. Federal Assistance Award Data System After suffering through a drought and excessive heat, farmers often turn to federal assistance programs. The FAADS database contains a central collection of selected, computer-based data on federal financial assistance award transactions. Each action-by-action record contains such items as the name and location of the recipient, the amount of the awarded or amended federal assistance, the program under which the award was made, and the project description. To order the data, call the Database Library at 573-884-7711 or download an order form. Stories To order stories from the IRE Resource Center, send e-mail to rescntr@ire.org or call us at 573-882-3364. Articles about housing issues Story No. 17316: A Times-Dispatch series by Gordon Hickey, Michael Martz and Millie Gore examines "problems low-income people have in renting decent housing" in Richmond, Va., as well as "problems building and safety officials have with forcing landlords to comply with regulations." The investigation reveals that "some ...landlords milk their tenants, who are forced to live in vermin-infested apartments or padlocked room where heat is a dream." The stories detail the contradictions of government inspectors "with one approving an apartment only to have another fail." The investigation also shows how tenants are trapped to suffer in silence: "If they complain, inspectors could evict them, and if evicted, they have no place else to go." (published 2000) Story No. 1280 Nancy Pappas of the Manchester (Conn.) Herald investigates an apartment complex for the elderly and finds a series of problems ranging from inadequate heat to faulty building construction. (published 1985) Articles about drought and water use Story No. 20763 This Center for Public Integrity project reveals and documents the increasingly common privatization of public drinking water systems worldwide and examines the impact of this new form of globalization. Three private water utilities companies, all based in France, dominate the worldwide market. This project raises concerns that a few companies could soon control a large chunk of the world's most vital resource. 31 researchers, writers and editors were involved in this twelve-month investigation. (published 2003) Story No. 20172 Traci Watson and Paul Overberg of USA Today "found that scores of the nation's rivers fell to historic low levels during the past four months." (published 2002) Story No. 20520 Many cities with blooming populations expect to suffer from a water shortage in the near future. This Governing article by Tom Arrandale explains how different city governments are preparing to deal with the issue. (published 2002) Story No. 20587 As fresh water resources continue to deplete and privatization increases, more and more people are facing the hard facts of a water shortage. In The New Yorker, William Finnegan examines some of the numbers outlining this growing problem and looks at a few cases where the clash between necessity and privatization of resources has already begun. (published 2002) Story No. 20239 John Head of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution examined the farm crisis in Georgia. It takes a look at farm families and the effects of drought. (published 2000) Story No. 20132 The Orlando Sentinel published a 12-chapter series "of special reports focusing attention on what many experts see as the state's long-term water crisis." The most critical issues faced by Floridians include decreasing water supplies, more factors leading to lower water quality and scientific and political barriers to long-term solutions. 20132 Debbie Salamone 2002 Sentinel (Orlando, Fla.) Search for more stories in IRE's Resource Center. Tipsheets To order tipsheets from the IRE Resource Center, send e-mail to rescntr@ire.org or call us at 573-882-3364. Tipsheet No. 2200 Darcy Spears of KVBC-Las Vegas compiled this tipsheet for a panel on “Urban Sprawl: Investigating Land and Water Issues” at the 2004 IRE Regional Conference. Search for more tipsheets in IRE's Resource Center. IRE Publications The Investigative Reporter's Handbook, Brant Houston's Computer-Assisted Reporting book and other helpful publications are available from IRE and NICAR. IRE members can search the indexes of The IRE Journal and Uplink. Back issues of The IRE Journal and Uplink may be purchased for $10 each. There is an additional $10 user fee for nonmembers. Check with the Resource Center at 573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org for availability. Web Links
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