North Carolina Football Star Dies Of Apparent Heat Illness

Another high school football player has died from what appears to have been a heat-related illness, emphasizing once again the critical importance of hydration safety for football players and other athletes.

Atlas Fraley, a 6'1", 255-lb defensive lineman on the Chapel Hill (N.C.) High School football team, was found dead by his parents on August 12, 2008, hours after calling 911 from his home complaining he was deyhdrated, that his body was "hurting all over," and he thought he needed an "IV or something." Paramedics arrived seven minutes later, but left within a half hour.

Fraley, considered a top NCAA Division I football prospect, had earlier complained of a headache and cramping during a scrimmage against another local high school.  The cause of Fraley’s death is still unknown, and the results of an autopsy have not released.  News reports indicated, however, that the rising senior had collapsed from dehydration at his home a year earlier.  His parents called paramedics, who treated him with intravenous fluids.

Ironically, the Chapel Hill-Carboro City school board had approved in June 2008 a policy designed to prevent heat-related illness for high school athletes, which, among other things, required football coaches to monitor the hydration status of players using pre- and post-exercise body weights during the first three weeks of practice and outlined how much water or sports drinks athletes needed to drink before, during, and after exercise.

According to MSNBC, two investigations were underway as a result of Fraley's death. The Chapel Hill School System is looking at how its personnel reacted during the scrimmage in which Fraley became ill and says initial information indicates proper procedures were followed. Orange County EMS is also looking at how that agency responded after the teenager called 911 complaining of cramps and dehydration.