Gruesome week in the American workplace. Worker pulled head-first into wood chipper. MTA subway worker dragged to his death by a train. Electrocution, vehicle incidents, shootings, forklift and an explosion that killed three. On average, over 100 workers are killed every week in the United States due to traumatic injuries suffered at work. More than 20 times as many die from occupational diseases, many due to exposure to hazardous substances many years before they died. The few narratives below (gathered from almost 100 Google News searches) do not come close to capturing the full toll that work takes on the working people of this country. Nevertheless the accounts below gave you a taste of the preventable carnage occurring in workplaces across the country every day.
Paving company worker electrocuted on job in Westbury
Woodbury, NY — A paving company worker was electrocuted while working in Woodbury Tuesday, police say. They say the 43-year-old man was operating a paving machine behind J&K Cabinetry on Summa Avenue around 2 p.m. Detectives say the victim was pronounced dead by a Nassau County police.
Nevada State Police identify officers killed on I-15 in Las Vegas
LAS VEGAS, NV – The identities of two Nevada State Police officers who were killed in the line of duty on Thursday were released hours after the deadly incident. Sergeant Michael Abbate joined the department in December 2013 and was recently promoted to Sergeant earlier this month. Trooper Alberto Felix became a part of the department in January 2019. Before his service with the Highway Patrol, Trooper Felix honorably served in the United States Air Force. The officers were struck and killed by a vehicle on northbound I-15 around 3:30 a.m., according to police. Sources told the 8 News Now Investigators that the two troopers were investigating a potentially impaired driver who may have been asleep at the wheel on the side of the freeway when a second driver hit and killed them. The troopers were thrown into the air and landed on the road below I-15. Sources said the suspected driver, who was later taken into custody, smelled of alcohol.
Colorado officer killed in the line of duty
CORTEZ, Colo. – On Thursday morning, a Colorado police department provided more information about a shooting that resulted in the death of an officer on Wednesday. Sergeant Michael Moran with the Cortez Police Department was killed while responding to a traffic stop on Wednesday morning. Police said that while not much information was available due to the ongoing investigation, that investigation is being handled by the Colorado Bureau of Investigation.
Pizza delivery driver killed off Greystone Boulevard while making delivery
COLUMBIA, S.C. — Columbia Police have identified a man who was shot and killed while delivering pizza on Wednesday night. Police said officers were called to the Tamarind at Stonebridge Apartments on Stoneridge Drive, just off of Greystone Boulevard, around 11 p.m., where they found the victim, 48-year-old Christopher Shirah, unresponsive. He was later pronounced dead at the scene by emergency medical services. Police said Shirah was making a delivery at the time of his killing.
Man Killed in Lake Wales Industrial Accident Thursday
Lake Wales, FL — On Thursday, November 30th, 2023 Polk County Sheriff’s Office Deputies and Polk County Fire Rescue responded to Westlake Royal Roofing Solutions located at 200 Story Road in Lake Wales regarding a forklift accident. Upon arrival, Polk County Fire Rescue was directed by employees to an unresponsive male patient later identified as Christian Torres. Mr. Torres was an employee of the business who was discovered unresponsive pinned between a stack of roofing pallets and a forklift. As a result, Mr. Torres was transported to Advent Health in Lake Wales by PCFR where he was pronounced deceased at 1417 hours. Torres been employed by Westlake Royal Roofing Solutions for five years and is a certified forklift operator.
Worker at FedEx Hub dies
MEMPHIS, Tenn. (WMC) – A FedEx worker died at the World Hub on Thursday morning. On November 29, around 11:21 p.m., officers responded to the FedEx World Hub on Sprankel Avenue regarding an accidental death. Police say that an employee was injured while working and then transported to a nearby hospital in critical condition. Later at the hospital, the victim was pronounced deceased. 86-year-old Verna Mae Jackson. It’s the fifth death at the world hub since 2017. It’s the busiest time of year for FedEx and one of the hardest for families of loved ones who’ve lost their lives at the World Hub. One year ago to the day, Angelo Scott died after the UTV he was driving was hit by an industrial truck. Jessica James died last February after the forklift she was operating fell on top of her. Duntate Young was killed in 2019 after being hit by a shipping container door. And grandmother, Ellen Gladney was found under a motorized mobile conveyer belt system in 2017.
Tow truck driver killed in I-255 crash near Dupo, Illinois
DUPO, Ill. – A tow truck driver assisting one person in need was fatally struck Wednesday morning near Dupo, Illinois, according to Illinois State Police. The crash happened just after 10 a.m. Wednesday in the southbound lanes of Interstate 255, near milepost 6 in Monroe County. Prior to the collision, the tow truck driver was helping someone whose vehicle was broken down on the right shoulder of the road. Investigators say the tow truck driver was in the process of removing the vehicle and loading it onto the truck. While assisting with the matter, a different driver struck the tow truck driver from the left side of the tow truck. The tow truck driver, identified as Wade Bivens of East Carondelet, died at the scene of the collision. Bivens was 57. Officials say there have been an alarming number of pedestrians struck and killed on both sides of the St. Louis metro recently, including some on duty for their jobs.
30-year-old employee dead in York after deadly ‘incident’ between forklift and tractor-trailer
YORK, Pa. — The York County Coroner’s Office was dispatched to the scene of a deadly incident involving a tractor-trailer and a forklift at a packaging company in Manchester Township on Thursday, Nov. 30. The incident occurred shortly after 11 a.m. at CP Flexible Packaging, located on Grumbacher Road, according to county spokesperson Ted Czech. There was one confirmed fatality, according to Pam Gay, the York County Coroner. The coroner’s office has identified the man as 30-year-old Joseph Via III from Dover Township. Via was found unresponsive with injuries sustained in the incident involving a forklift and parked tractor-trailer, according to the coroner’s report. He later passed away at WellSpan York Hospital. A spokesperson for the Occupational Safety and Health Administration said the agency is looking into the issue due to it occurring in the workplace.
Virginia man killed after being pulled head-first into wood chipper
SALTVILLE, Va. (WCYB) — A Virginia man is dead following a tragic accident involving a wood chipper. Saltville Police said a man was killed when he was pulled head-first into a wood chipper. According to Chief Erik Puckett, the incident happened around 11:30 a.m. Tuesday on First Avenue in Saltville. Jonathan Basil Kilby, 38, of Glade Spring, was the man killed, Puckett said., was working with a tree-trimming crew at the time of the incident. The incident has been ruled accidental, although the circumstances of how he ended up in the wood chipper were not revealed by police.
3 dead, 1 hospitalized in explosion that sparked massive fire at auto repair shop
HILLSBORO, Ohio — An explosion at an auto repair shop in Ohio that killed three people and sent a fourth person to a hospital sparked a massive fire that burned for hours and spewed thick, black smoke into the air. The Tuesday afternoon blast at Jimbo’s Auto Repair in Hillsboro was felt at several nearby sites, including the Paint Creek Joint EMS & Fire District, whose crews quickly responded to the scene. The heavy smoke was visible miles away. Cameron Boatman,19, David Beaver 33, and Tim Furbee, 47, were killed, according to Highland County Coroner Dr. Jeffrey Beery. The injured person remained hospitalized Wednesday in stable condition. The cause of the explosion remained under investigation Wednesday. The State Fire Marshal’s Office is the leading the probe, and the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration will also investigate.
MTA worker killed by subway train at 34th Street-Herald Square station
New York, NY — An on-duty MTA track worker died in a mishap with a subway train in Midtown overnight just one month shy of his one-year anniversary with the agency. Hilarion Joseph, 57, was part of a cleaning crew just south of the 34 St-Herald Square station just before 12:15 a.m. That is when he came into contact and was dragged by a slow-moving northbound D train. The train was going about 10 mph during the scheduled maintenance. Joseph was taken to Bellevue Hospital, where he was pronounced dead. The victim was a flagger on the track work crew collecting trash from the tracks. As a flagger, he was responsible for alerting oncoming trains to track work further down the line. “Whether there was not enough clearance, whether he stumbled, we don’t know, but obviously, a flagger should under any circumstance, shouldn’t be coming into contact with the train,” said NYC Transit President Rich Davey.
Contractor dies at Nucor Steel Indiana; OSHA investigating
CRAWFORDSVILLE, Ind. — Workplace safety authorities are investigating after a contract employee died last week in an incident at Nucor Steel Indiana in Montgomery County. Nucor Steel Indiana in Crawfordsville is investigating a “workplace fatality” involving a contractor that occurred Friday morning, according to a statement sent Tuesday by Nucor Corp. General Manager Eric Radtke. The death, Radtke said, involved a contract employee working at the plant for Edw. C. Levy Co. Following the death, the mill suspended operations “immediately,” Nucor Corp. said.
Garbage Truck Driver Killed In Diana Car Accident
DIANA, NEW YORK – A garbage truck driver has tragically died in a Diana car accident after a tire failure along Route 3, according to New York State Police. Diana police officials are saying that the accident took place around 5:11 p.m. on Thursday. A garbage truck driver was traveling down Route 3 when one of the tires on the truck failed. The garbage truck driver lost control of their vehicle before crashing. Paramedics were called to the scene of the collision in order to help the victim. Sadly, the driver of the garbage truck later died after being rushed to the hospital. A full investigation remains ongoing at this time. Tire blowouts are one of the major causes of deadly car accidents in the United State