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Weekly Toll

Weekly Toll: Those Who Didn’t Come Home

ByJordan Barab

Oct 18, 2021 #Arizona, #California, #Colorado, #Florida, #Georgia, #Indiana, #Louisiana, #Maryland, #Massachusetts, #Minnesota, #Missouri, #Nevada, #New York, #North Carolina, #North Dakota, #Ohio, #Pennsylvania, #Tennessee, #Texas, #Utah, #Washington

This is a weekly list of some workers killed on the job over the past week.  This is the first time I’ve compiled this list in over two years and I continue to be shocked at the number of people who die every week and how they die. And I continue to be upset that the worker’s name is rarely mentioned, nor details about what happened. And despite the number of Google news searches I do to compile this list, it’s still probably less than half of those workers who are killed in the workplace every year. (Note: COVID-19 related deaths are not included on this list.)

 

Worker Killed At Paper Recycling Facility In Minneapolis

MINNEAPOLIS, MN — A worker has died at a paper recycling facility in Minneapolis after suffering injuries involving heavy machinery. Simon Barrera Merino was injured about 1:40 a.m. Tuesday at Pioneer Industries International. Merino suffered head and chest injuries from a “workplace injury involving a forklift.” He was declared dead at the scene.

Minnesota woman killed in construction accident in North Dakota

Cooperstown, ND — A construction worker from Minnesota was killed on the job in North Dakota this weekend. The accident happened Friday afternoon in the city of Cooperstown.  According to a news release from the Highway Patrol, the victim was struck by a dump truck that was backing up to pour asphalt onto the roadway. The victim, a 50-year-old woman from Odessa, Minnesota, died at the scene.

Worker dies in reported equipment fall at convention center construction site — UPDATE

Seattle, WA — One worker, , Bryan Phillips, 31, was reported dead after equipment reportedly fell from an upper level of the downtown convention center construction site Monday afternoon. Seattle Fire was called to the 9th Ave scene just before 2 PM for a “rescue extrication” call at the construction site but a department spokesperson said the person was dead at the scene. According to Seattle Fire radio updates, a lift reportedly fell from the second level of the construction site near 9th and Pine.

Colorado postal worker is third to be shot and killed in US in the past two days

Longmont, Co — A US Postal Service worker in Longmont, Colorado, was shot and killed Wednesday, according to a statement from police. The postal worker is the third to be killed in the US the past two days, after two USPS employees were shot dead Tuesday in a Memphis postal facility. The FBI said the shooter in Memphis also was a postal employee. In Longmont, police said officers responding to a call found a postal employee shot in front of neighborhood mailboxes. The worker died at the scene.

Florida elevator technician dies in ‘industrial accident’ at condo building: police

Aventura, FL — A 28-year-old elevator technician was working on repairs at a South Florida condominium building when he was killed on Tuesday afternoon in an “industrial accident,” according to the Aventura Police Department.  “He appears to have sustained some type of injury when he was repairing an elevator, and he has succumbed to his injuries,” Aventura Police Sgt. Hans Maestre told Fox News.

NLMK worker who died in industrial accident identified

FARRELL, PA – An NLMK Pennsylvania worker died in an industrial accident early Tuesday morning at the company’s Farrell steel plant, John Libonati, Mercer County Coroner, said Tuesday. Kenneth L. Stitt, 32, of Hermitage, was pronounced dead at 1:47 a.m. at Sharon Regional Medical Center’s emergency room following the accident, Libonati said. He ruled the death accidental; Stitt died from chest injuries. The accident happened at 1:10 a.m. Tuesday while plant equipment was being worked on.

Precinct 4 deputy killed in shooting

HARRIS COUNTY, Texas — A Harris County Precinct 4 deputy constable, Deputy Kareem Atkins, 30, is dead and two others are injured after they were shot while working an extra security job in north Houston, according to police. Precinct 4 has identified the deceased officer as Deputy Kareem Atkins, 30. He had been with the department since January 2019. Atkins recently returned from paternity leave

Delivery Worker Stabbed To Death

NEW YORK, NY — Police are searching for the suspect who stabbed and killed a delivery worker on the Lower East Side on Saturday morning. Police released a new video and they’re hoping it helps in the search, CBS2’s Thalia Perez reported Sunday. They said the incident happened just after 1 a.m. Saturday. The victim, identified as 51-year-old Sala Miah of Brooklyn, was found near the Sara D. Roosevelt Park with a slash wound to his face and a stab wound to the abdomen.

DTE worker dies trying to restore power

BRIGHTON, Mich.  – A DTE employee has died trying to restore power in Brighton. According to the company and Michigan State Police, the worker came into contact with an energized cable and sustained fatal injuries. Police say the worker was a 41-year-old man from South Lyon.

Maricopa County deputy Killed

Avondale, AZ — Juan M. Ruiz, a Maricopa County deputy, was attacked and killed while while processing a suspect at an MCSO facility in Avondale Saturday morning. Ruiz was found unconscious and bleeding from his face by co-workers.

Police officer killed working his first shift with the department

Alamo, GA — Officer Dylan Harrison was shot and killed outside the Alamo Police Department Sunday. A man accused of ambushing a Georgia police officer on his first shift with the department gunned him down because he had arrested an acquaintance of his hours earlier, officials said.

Dump truck driver dead in crash near Sherrills Ford community in southeastern Catawba County

Catawba County, NC — The driver of a dump truck is dead after a crash in southeastern Catawba County on Wednesday morning. State Trooper R. Rudisill said a commercial dump truck crossed the center line on N.C. Hwy. 150 near Sherrills Ford and left the road. He said the truck passed through a yard, crossed Zeb Little Road and crashed into a wooded area ther

Two postal workers were killed during a shooting at facility in Memphis. The shooter is also dead

Memphis, TN — Two US Postal Service employees are dead after a shooting Tuesday at a facility in Memphis, Tennessee, according to the federal officials. The suspect, who was also a postal employee, died of an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound, according to Lisa-Anne Culp, a spokesperson for the FBI’s office in Memphis. Fox affiliate WHBQ spoke with the family of one of the deceased postal employees, 37-year-old Demetria Dortch. The Commercial Appeal identified another victim as James Wilson, a USPS manager, his cousin said.

23-year-old police officer killed while helping person who crashed on I-540

KNIGHTDALE, N.C. (WTVD) — A Knightdale police officer died in a car crash on Interstate 540 early Sunday morning. The crash happened around 2:40 a.m. on eastbound I-540 near the Buffaloe Road exit. Officers, including Ryan Hayworth, 23, were investigating a single-car crash in the area when another car crashed into the back of the officers’ patrol vehicle. Hayworth, a three-month veteran of the force and former member of the US Army, was killed in the collision

Highway Department Employee Dies In Work Accident

Greene County, TN — A Greene County Highway Department employee died Thursday morning after he fell under the wheel of a work truck while picking up tree limbs. John Cooper, 48, of Mohawk, was identified as the victim by the Tennessee Highway Patrol. The accident happened about 10:10 a.m. Thursday on Dude Lane as Cooper walked alongside a work truck pulling a wood chipper trailer, according to the Highway Patrol report. Cooper was part of a highway department work crew picking up tree limbs and placing them in the wood chipper when he fell, landing under the driver’s side wheel and suffered the fatal injuries.

Truck driver killed Thursday in rollover accident on I-65

TIPPECANOE COUNTY, IN – The driver of a semi-tractor trailer was killed early Thursday morning (Oct. 14) when vehicle ran off the side of Interstate 65 and rolled into a wooded fence line, ejecting him in the process. According to the Tippecanoe County Sheriff’s Office, the driver, who isn’t being identified until the county coroner’s office can make a positive identification, was traveling south on I-65 near the 179-mile marker, just north of the Indiana 43 exit, around 1:50 a.m. when the accident happened. Investigators say the tractor trailer ran off the right side of the road, rolled and came to rest near a wooded fence line. When emergency personnel arrived on scene, they found the driver outside the truck with life-threatening injuries.

Postal worker killed, suspect arrested after Pa. shooting

Collier Township, PA — A West End man gunned down a mail carrier, Louis Vignone, in Collier on Thursday morning because, according to his statement to police, he thought the carrier had poisoned him and his family when they were neighbors, federal agents said. Eric M. Kortz, 53, is charged in federal court with killing Louis Vignone as the postal worker sat in his mail truck. U.S. postal inspectors said he blocked Mr. Vignone’s truck with a van, got out and shot the mail carrier multiple times, including once in the head. Kortz said he believed the mail carrier poisoned him and his family with cyanide.

Man dies in spec building accident

Defiance, OH — A male worker died Thursday following an accident at a construction site on Defiance’s east side. The man, whose identity was not released by rescue personnel, was working on the new speculation building being built along Domersville Road when he fell. The man’s death was confirmed by Craig Stambaugh, chief operating officer of NAI Harmon Group, which is developing the speculation building in the new Harmon Business Park. The general contractor for the project is Logan Creek Construction Co. of Oregon.

Worker Killed in Semi-Truck Accident on Highway 87

Duchesne, UT — October 6, 2021, a worker was killed as the result of an accident where a semi-truck hit them along Highway 87. Authorities reported that the accident took place at around 3:00 a.m. in the area of Highway 87 and 6000 South. According to officials, a worker was on the roadway directing traffic as a semi-trailer attempted to back up along the roadway. While doing so, a passing semi-truck hit the man in the roadway, who police say was not wearing reflective gear.

Louisiana State Trooper Killed

Baton Rouge, LA — Authorities say a veteran state trooper, 19-year veteran Master State Trooper Adam Gaube, was ambushed and killed during a shooting rampage in Louisiana early Saturday morning. Investigators say the suspected gunman, 31-year-old Matthew Mire, is tied to several shootings at two parishes just south of Baton Rouge.

BOSTON, MA – A construction worker, Fernando Augusto Rafael Da Silva  was found dead at an East Boston construction site Wednesday morning after falling about six floors down a stairwell shaft. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) said Thursday that the worker was employed by Evolution Iron Works Inc. in Woburn. Da Silva was from Brazil. He was married and the father of two young children. He had been in the US for three years.

Roofer falls to his death while working on historic building in Milo Grogan area

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WSYX) — Investigators are trying to find out what caused a man working on the roof of a historic building in the Milo Grogan neighborhood to fall to his death. Police were called to the 3rd Avenue building Thursday just before noon where dozens of artists work and live. Neighbors said a couple of guys had been repairing the slate roof of the old school working about 50 feet above street level.

1 Person Accidentally Killed At Auto Repair Shop In Rancho Cordova

Rancho Cordova, CA — One person has died at an auto repair shop in Rancho Cordova. The Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office confirms it was the result of an industrial accident

Two Pilots are killed in crash of business jet in east Georgia

THOMSON, Ga.  — Authorities have identified two pilots killed in the Tuesday crash of a business jet in east Georgia. Raymond Bachman, 73, of Fountain Hills, Arizona; and 63-year-old Claude Duchesne, 63, of El Paso, Texas, died in the crash, the McDuffie Coroner’s Office said.

A nursing assistant killed his coworker at Jefferson University Hospital, then shot two Philadelphia police officers, authorities say

Philadelphia, PA –A certified nursing assistant shot and killed his coworker at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital on Monday, then started a shootout with police officers four miles away before he was apprehended, authorities said. Two officers were wounded during the early morning gun battle near Fairmount Park in the city’s Parkside section.

Construction worker dead after being hit by dump truck

ORLANDO, Fla. —Orlando police said a construction worker was killed Monday morning when they were struck by a dump truck. The incident happened on land which it appears crews are clearing and bulldozing in preparation for some type of new building. Police say they got a call around 9:20 a.m. on reports of a pedestrian hit by a vehicle. When they arrived, they discovered the scene was an active construction site and a construction worker, who was on foot, had been struck by a dump truck.

Fort Worth worker dies while working on streetlight

FORT WORTH, Texas – A city of Fort Worth employee died while working on a streetlight over the weekend. The Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported 28-year-old Jorge Gomez-Guzman was electrocuted while making repairs on Vickery Boulevard. City officials said his co-workers performed CPR but were not able to save him. Gomez-Guzman worked for the Fort Worth Transportation and Public Works Department.

1 person dead in industrial accident in Galena Park, fire chief says

GALENA PARK, Texas (KTRK) — At least one person is dead following an industrial accident in Galena Park, authorities say. While it’s unclear what happened, the fire chief confirmed that at least one person was killed in the incident.

The taxi driver killed while on duty in Milwaukee described as a humble and hard-working man; police seek info on slaying

Milwaukee, WI — No arrests have been made in the killing earlier this month of a Milwaukee taxi cab driver, who was shot while on duty and his taxi set on fire. Shahbaz Imran, 44, was found in an alley in the 1800 block of West Walnut Street on Oct. 2 after he was fatally shot around 10:45 p.m., according to Milwaukee police. An immigrant from Pakistan who had lived in the United States for more than 10 years, Imran worked the night shift at Yellow Cab to support his wife and children in Pakistan.

Raymond Mitchell, 33, died one week ago while retrieving a disabled vehicle on I-5 near Kalama

Kalama, WA — Raymond Mitchell, 33, died one week ago (September 22) while retrieving a disabled vehicle on I-5 near Kalama. He became pinned against the truck he drove for TLC Towing when the rear trailer of a passing logging truck swung into him. The Washington State Patrol (WSP) says speed was a factor in the crash, which took Mitchell from his wife and four children. Nearly five months earlier (April 24), the owner of Affordable Towing, Art Anderson and the parents of the motorist he was helping, died near Kelso also along I-5. According to the WSP, the driver who ran into the three people was impaired. In four separate collisions since December, two Washington tow truck technicians have been killed, one required a leg amputation and another received lower body injuries as a result of being hit while assisting a disabled motorist. These tragedies highlight the danger to individuals who regularly work along the shoulders of our busy and congested roads. Locally, a driver and the family in the car he was towing were all killed in Kelso along I-5 earlier this year, and a driver for Chappelle’s Towing lost a leg in an accident in Clark County in January. As of August of this year, at least 15 tow providers have died while performing roadside rescues in 2021.

By Jordan Barab

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