Friday, August 24, 2012

The Weekly Toll: Death in the American Workplace

Our hearts go out to the family members and friends of the workers we have lost.

City Worker Struck by Truck

May 31, 2012 - Houston, TX - 75 year old Charles Williams Sr., was killed when he was struck by and run over by his truck while working for the Houston Public Works Department.  Williams and a co-worker were clearing storm drains when their work truck started rolling. He was killed as he attempted to stop the truck.


Waste Collection Worker Dies of Heat Stress

June 1, Trenton, NJ - 47 year old Mark Jefferson, a Labor Ready temp working for Waste Management picking up trash on a collection route died after becoming ill due to the heat.   Jefferson was transported to a local hospital where he died.



 Driver Killed by Runaway Truck

July 6, Des Moines, IA - 46 year old Carl Magee of Pekin, IL died when he reportedly tried to jump aboard his rig after it slipped out of gear and began to roll away from a loading dock. He lost his balance and was run over. He worked for the U.S. Postal Service and MCA Trucking of Little Rock, AR.

Railroad Worker Killed

August 1, Mason City, IA - 36 year old Georgiy Soloviyov of Stanhope, IA was killed when he was pinned between two rail cars. He was working on a car coupling when another car rolled into him, pinned him. He was employed by Union Pacific Railroad.

Worker Crushed Under Material

August 1, Fort Atkinson, WI - 51 year old Jack Graves, Jr., of Janesville died after being crushed under steel panels at Spacesaver Corp. He was reportedly using a hand truck to move the steel panels when they fell on him.

State Worker Drowns

August 1, Treynor, IA - 78 year old Bruce Jensen died when he drowned under an overturned mower.  Jensen, a Department of Natural Resources employee, was using a commercial mower to mow the grass along a steep embankment, when the machine rolled and landed on top of him. He drowned at the scene.

Man Suffers Fatal Fall From Ladder

August 5, Fort Worth, TX - 62 year old Fermin Chantaca died when he fell from a ladder while working at the construction site for the Kimball Art Museum.  He died of a closed head injury.


City Worker Dies in Tire Incident

August 2, Amarillo, TX - 57 year old Gary Duwayne Witt died of massive head and chest trauma while airing up a tire on a road grader.   Witt, an employee for the City of Amarillo, was locking the tire into the rim when a steel locking ring shot off and struck him.

Construction Worker Dies From Fall

August 2, West Palm Beach, FL - 38 year old Juan Arias fell to his death inside a vacant Sears store he was working with others to demolish.  Officials say Arias was near the ceiling removing tiles, and somehow slipped off a scissor lift and fell 15 to 20 feet to the floor below striking his head on the floor.

Worker Dies of Heat Related Illness

August 2, Logan, WV - 25 year old Albert Caleb Kiser died from a heat-related illness while cleaning up an abandoned coal-mine site. Kiser collapsed while cutting down a tree while working for Eastern Arrow Corp., which was reclaiming the Sugar Branch Burning Refuse Pile for the state Department of Environmental Protection's abandoned mine lands program.

Supervisor Shot During Meeting

August 2, Milwaukee, WI - 58 year old George Hites, a Trans-Coil International employee, was shot multiple times by a 23 year old disgruntled employee who had developed a grudge against Hites. Authorities did not disclose what motivation the employee had for what he did, but after shooting Hites, he killed himself.   

Two DOT Worker Struck and Killed

August 3, Murphy, SC - 60 year old Tony Leon Wright of Murphy and 56 year old Dannie Burrell of Marble were killed when a vehicle veered off the road and struck the workers. It is not clear why the 65 year old driver of the vehicle traveled off the roadway and into Wright and Burrell.   

Young Worker Electrocuted


August 3, Forked River, NJ - 20 year old Rich Grande, an employee for Jersey Central Power & Light was electrocuted from a high tension power line while working near the Rolling Thunder Horse Farm.   



Worker Dies in Fall From Man Lift

August 4, Alton, IL - 47 year old Jay VanBuskirk of Edwardsville fell to his death when he apparently lost his footing after riding a man lift and fell approximately 70 feet.  He was an employee for ConAgra in Alton.

Employee Found Unconscious at Steel Plant

August 4, Gary, IN - 61 year old Donald Graden of Portage was found unconscious at US Steel's Gary Works. He was transported to an area hospital where he died. There were no signs of trauma to Graden, but they do not know his cause of death at this time.

Park Worker Suffers Fatal Injuries

August 4, Mahwah, NJ - 23 year old Michael Storm Fischer of Ringwood died while working at Campgaw Mountain Reservation in Mahwah. Fischer was helping to close a set of large metal gates when one of them struck him in the torso. At the hospital it was found that he had suffered internal injuries far more severe than first thought and died during surgery.

Work Zone Crash Kills Worker


August 5, Topeka, KS - 22 year old Curtis James Harlan of Arma was killed while working on Interstate 470 on the west side of Topeka. Harlan, was an employee of R.A. Knapp Construction Inc. when he was struck by a vehicle in the work zone.



Paper Mill Worker Dies in Incident

August 6, Chillicothe, OH - 50 year old Rebecca Mitchell died while working at Glatfelter's Printing paper mill.  Authorities have not released the cause of her death.

Bouncer Killed in Other's Fight

August 6, West Orange, NJ - 32 year old Jacques Nelson was a bouncer at Misty's Restaurant when he was shot to death trying to break up a brawl.  No details are given but the report says he was trying to break up a fight in the parking lot when he was shot. Police are still looking for the shooter. 


 Wall Collapse Kills Two

August 6, Jacksonville, TX - 60 year old Donald Starling and 68 year old Hollis Morris died when a 40 year old retaining wall they were trying to reinforce collapsed onto them. Morris' son escaped without injury.  Workers said the wall seemed sturdy, so they rested near it as they waited for the steel reinforcements to arrive, but that is when the wall came crashing down.


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