Sunday, March 18, 2007

Weekly Toll: Death In The American Workplace

A partial list of workplace death in the United States over the past few weeks.

OSHA looks at death after fall at rig site


WILLISTON, ND - Federal officials are investigating the death of a man who fell at an oil rig site in eastern Montana. Clinton Mosby, 20, of Williston, died Feb. 16. He was at a rig site about 40 miles west of Sidney, said Richland County (Mont.) Coroner Marvin Johnson. A preliminary investigation indicated steps leading from a tank battery up to a rig floor gave way, and that Mosby fell at least 8 feet. Other workers tried to revive him but he was pronounced dead at the Sidney Health Center.


County worker falls off ladder, hits head, dies

Marana, AZ - A Pima County maintenance worker fell from an 8-foot ladder Friday, struck his head and died, a county spokesman said Monday. John Andrews, 48, of Marana fell from the top of the ladder while working on the fire alarm system at the new Dr. Herbert K. Abrams Public Health Center, 3950 S. Country Club Road, said Mike. Tuinstra, county facilities management director. Andrews was taken to University Medical Center where he was pronounced dead shortly after arriving, Tuinstra said. Tuinstra said he didn't know what caused Andrews to fall, adding that the county's Risk Management Department and the federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration are investigating the death. He had no estimate of how long the OSHA investigation, normal procedure in on-the-job deaths, will take.


Worker dies at Fayetteville concrete plant

Fayetteville, NC - Buried up to his neck, Barry Johnson of Fayetteville may have lived as long as an hour after tons of sand fell on him in an industrial hopper Tuesday. Firefighters gave Johnson oxygen and tried to dig him out, but the mix of sand and rock in the hopper was too much and he died, said Battalion Commander Richard Bradshaw. Johnson didn’t have enough strength to expand his chest against the weight of the material crushing his body, Bradshaw said. “We did the best we could, but the odds were against us,” Bradshaw said. The accident occurred at the S&W Ready Mix concrete plant on South Reilly Road. It is unclear what time Johnson died; Bradshaw estimated it was less than an hour after the accident.


Man killed in shooting

GLOUCESTER, VA -- As he always does, Ted Anthony "Andy" Brown stopped by East Coast gas station in Gloucester Monday morning to pick up two newspapers - The New York Times and the Daily Press - and a cup of coffee and cigarettes. In less than an hour Brown would be dead, the victim of a shooting outside of the Gloucester Toyota office where he worked as a salesman.


New Jersey Officer Dies After High-Speed Chase

Newark, NJ - A decorated Newark police sergeant was killed early yesterday when his car flipped over while he was pursuing another police vehicle, which had been commandeered by its handcuffed occupant. Sgt. Tommaso Popolizio, 33, was taken to University Hospital with massive head injuries from the crash, which occurred around 4 a.m. on Doremus Avenue. He was pronounced dead at 5:55 a.m., a hospital spokesman said. The fleeing suspect was captured soon after the crash.


Officer dies after accident

Clayton, GA - A Clayton County police officer died Sunday afternoon, four days after he was critically injured while escorting a funeral procession off-duty. Officer Shawn Newlin, 25, never recovered from a coma following the wreck on Tara Boulevard near Sherwood Drive on Wednesday afternoon. He rear-ended a car with his motorcycle, was thrown off and landed on his head. "It just makes you realize how fragile life is," Clayton police Maj. Tim Robinson said Sunday. Newlin joined the Clayton Police Department in June, and had been working as a patrolman.


Police Look For Belmont Store Shooter

PORTLAND, OR- Police questioned witnesses and looked for clues Monday in the brutal shooting of a Southeast Portland fill-in store clerk. It happened at 3:45 p.m. inside the Belmont Market at Southeast 34th and Belmont streets. Chester Yeom was inside working when a man came into the store and apparently tried to rob it. The gunman opened fire and hit him in the neck. Yeom does not usually work in the store, but was helping the store owner out for a couple hours.


One killed when jacked-up house falls

KENNER, La. — A house being raised in this New Orleans suburb fell back Sunday, trapping several workers underneath, including one who later died, police said. The brick house was in an area hit by flooding following Hurricane Katrina where a large number of houses are being raised, police said. Seven workers were under the house as jacks were being used to push the house several feet off the ground, police said. The weight shifted, causing the structure to fall back, said Capt. James Gallagher, a Kenner police spokesman. Six workers managed to free themselves, including one who later lost consciousness and was hospitalized in critical condition, Gallagher said. Rescuers cut piling to get to another worker who later died at a hospital, Gallagher said. He was identified as Alejandro Gonzalez, 25, a citizen of Mexico, Gallagher said.


Worker Killed Building Lexington Home

Lexington, KY - A 31-year-old Lexington man died instantly early Monday morning at a construction site on the city's southside. 27 NEWSFIRST was the only crew on the scene as investigators arrived to begin looking for the cause. Witnesses say the victim, 32 year old Everardo Tellez-Gervacio, was working to guide a Caterpiller that was carrying scaffolding when the wooden bars fell off, striking a wall and falling on top of him. The Fayette County coroner says Gervacio died instantly of a massive head injury. Two other workers injured on the scene were taken to the hospital for treatment but the coroner says those workers were not badly injured. Gervacio leaves behind a fiancee and a 20-month old baby girl.


Man dies in forklift accident

WEST POINT, MS - A Columbus man died Friday in West Point from injuries he suffered while operating a forklift at work. Clay County coroner Alvin Carter Jr. confirmed Gerry Saulsberry, 43, of 1218 15th St. S. in Columbus, died at 2:09 p.m. Friday at the intersection of Old White Road and Churchill Road in West Point. “He was operating a forklift, loading cross ties onto a rail car,” Carter said. “It appeared he was preparing to move the rail cars when he became pinned between a rail car and the forklift.”


Two killed in fiery crash on I-70 in Maryland

FREDERICK, Md. - Two people died in a fiery, rush-hour crash on Interstate 70 Monday when a pickup truck crossed the median and hit a tractor-trailer, rupturing the larger vehicle's fuel tank, state police said. The big rig's cab was crushed by a 40,000-pound steel coil that broke loose from the trailer and rolled forward, Sgt. Arthur Betts said. Drivers of both vehicles were killed, Betts said. He said the tractor-trailer was owned by PI&I Motor Express of Masury, Ohio. The crash occurred about three miles west of Frederick near Hollow Road, Betts said. The highway was closed in both directions for almost an hour after the 8:20 a.m. crash, Betts said. It wasn't fully open until nearly noon, he said.


1 killed, dozens escape explosion at warehouse

Houston, TX - Warehouse blast in east Houston claims man set to end his job today for new career An explosion at a southeast Houston warehouse Thursday killed a man whose last day on the job would have been today. The man died in the explosion at American Elastomer Products Co., a rubber manufacturing company in the 5300 block of Polk, about 11:40 a.m. Four dozen others who work there escaped without injury. Today, local authorities and officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will continue their investigation into the accident, which blew out walls and roof portions of the warehouse and rocked the surrounding Central City Industrial Park business complex. The metal structure of the building remained intact. A preliminary investigation showed the blast occurred after a piece of equipment, a high-pressure vessel used for the manufacturing of rubber, failed, assistant Houston Fire Chief Omero Longoria said. "How close he was to it or what the circumstances were, I'm not sure at this time," he said Thursday afternoon. By late Thursday, officials had not released the man's identity.


Construction worker dies at Jardine

Winchester, KS - One construction worker died and another was injured following an accident Wednesday at the Jardine Apartment Complex. Steven Darveaux of Winchester, Kan., died after falling from a forklift box. The box fell on top of him after he fell out, said Cheryl May, assistant vice president for university relations. The other man in the box, Timothy Hanes, Meriden, Kan., was injured. Mercy Regional Health Center declined to comment on his treatment or current status. May said the accident occurred between 5 and 5:15 p.m. Riley County Fire Department, K-State Police and Emergency Medical Services all responded to the accident.


Man dies in trench collapse in Southwest Seattle

SEATTLE, WA - A man was killed Friday afternoon when he was crushed by three large concrete blocks at a construction site. The call came into firefighters around 3:15 that a trench had collapsed between two homes in the 9400 block of 13th Avenue Southwest in the White Center area of Seattle. Fire officials say construction crews had finished installing a drainage pipe between the two homes. The workers had erected a wall of three large concrete blocks called ecology blocks that are used to prevent trench collapses. Each one weighs about 3,000 pounds.


Man crushed by dump truck

Atlanta, GA - A construction worker was killed Thursday afternoon at the Cherokee County Airport when he was crushed by a dump truck. Sgt. Jay Baker of the Cherokee County Sheriff’s department said the man was standing at the top of a ridge and was not in the driver’s sight-line. Baker said a worker standing next to the man jumped out of the way and was grazed by the truck but not seriously injured. The dead man was not identified pending the notification of his family.


A 31-year-old construction worker died after he fell off of the roof of a town house in Chester

County, Pa. - Jose Marcio Antunes Lomeu, of Riverside, N.J., was working on sheathing a roof in the 100 block of Stauffer Road in Atglen when he lost his balance, for an unknown reason, and fell from the roof about 1 p.m. , police said. Co-workers tried to resuscitate Lomeu as well as rescuers from Goodwill Ambulance, police said. Lomeu was pronounced dead at the scene, police said. Representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration were called to the scene and assisted Pennsylvania State Police in the investigation.


Unions Critical Of A Tulsa Plant

Tulsa, OK - Two labor unions are speaking out about the death of a Tulsa laundry worker. Eleazar Torres-Gomez died Tuesday when he was dragged inside an industrial dryer at the Cintas Corporation plant in Tulsa. Cintas is a uniform laundry service. The "Unite Here!" and Teamsters unions claim Cintas does not do enough to protect its workers company wide and has been cited by the Occupational, Safety and Health Administration or OSHA more than 170 times for unsafe working conditions. The News On 6 contacted Cintas on Wednesday and they said their safety record is 30% better than similar sized facilities in the industry. Cintas officials say their Tulsa plant has some of the highest scores on safety compliance requirements.


Government worker gunned down during rush hour

St. Lucia, WI - St Lucia recorded its fifth homicide for 2007 on Tuesday when Carlos Flavien, age 29, was gunned down. Like most people Flavien was on his way to work when at approximately 8:30 he was shot. At the time Flavien was on High Street near Elma’s wholesale and retail. A lone gunman creeped upon him and shot him three times. Reports indicate that one bullet hit him in the chest, another in the neck and a third hit him in the head.


Man Dies At Magnolia Lumber Plant

AR - A forklift operator at a Magnolia lumber company is dead after he was pinned between stacks of wood. Columbia County Coroner Randy Reed said 50-year-old Bartolo B. Abarca was lowering a stack of lumber early Tuesday when the forklift he was operating tipped over. Abarca was trapped between the load of lumber on his forklift and a stack of lumber on the ground at the Hixson Lumber Company south of town. Co-workers discovered the accident scene and Abarca's body just before 4:30 Tuesday morning. He had died at the scene. Walter Hixson, who owns the lumber company, said Abarca was a great employee and a good guy, and others at the company were deeply saddened.


Restaurant employee killed in robbery

Snellville, GA - A teenage restaurant employee was shot dead during a robbery in the Snellville area Tuesday night. By the time Gwinnett police responded to a call of an armed robbery in progress at Mr. Egg Roll in the 3300 block of Centerville Highway, the 18-year-old employee had already been shot. The two robbers, both men in their 20s, ran away from the restaurant with an undisclosed sum of money following the robbery about 9 p.m., said Gwinnett police Cpl. Darren Moloney. The victim’s name was withheld until his relatives were informed.


Factory accident kills father of eight

Nampa, ID - A Caldwell man died earlier this week in an accident at a Nampa cement factory. Two cranes on tracks collided at Amcor about 11 a.m. Monday, pinning the victim. The accident killed Rodney Bernal of Caldwell. He leaves behind a wife and eight children. “We have started an investigation,” said Occupational Safety and Health Administration Idaho Director Jerry Hockett, adding that the federal workplace-safety agency will look at Amcor’s training, equipment and procedures. Hockett said if there are violations of safety standards, OSHA could propose a citation. Nampa Fire Deputy Chief Doug Strosnider confirmed an engine responded to the fatality accident at Amcor, but had no further details. Amcor is situated between the Amalgamated Sugar Co. plant and the Treasure Valley Marketplace north of Nampa.Amcor forms concrete for road and other industrial purposes.


Tow-truck driver killed in accident

Loveland, CO - The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating an industrial accident in Loveland that killed a 44-year- old tow truck driver Thursday. Rae Bontz, spokesman for the Loveland Police Department, said the accident happened about 10 a.m. when the tow truck driver from JC Service and the owner of ACA Transportation were attempting to load a skid loader onto a flatbed tow truck. The truck bed was inclined as the tow truck driver, whose name is being withheld, guided the loader onto the bed. When the tow driver crawled underneath the loader's bucket to secure the loader with chains, the bucket dropped, striking the victim on the head and killing him.


Leipsic farmer killed by grain bin auger

LEIPSIC, Ohio — A 64-year-old farmer was found dead yesterday in one of his grain bins, entangled in an auger. His wife found him when she went to get him for lunch, authorities said. Tom Kreinbrink was pronounced dead at his farm on State Rt. 65 in Putnam County’s Van Buren Township, about a mile south of Leipsic, where authorities were called just before 1 p.m. Mr. Kreinbrink was working alone inside the large bin where a sweep auger was operating. The auger, anchored in the center of the bin, automatically circles the floor, carrying the last of the corn to an external receptacle, authorities said. Mr. Kreinbrink, who was shoveling corn that the auger missed, got his pant leg caught in the auger, which then swept him around the bin. When he was found, the auger was still turned on but had quit moving, authorities said.


San Bernardino father shot to death at work

RIALTO, CA - The execution-style shooting of a man as he approached his job at a Rialto storage center early Thursday has left co-workers shaken, family puzzled and police combing for clues. After his wife dropped him off across the street, Richard Martin Contreras was walking to the door of the Mobile Mini Storage Systems plant, where he worked as a welder, for a 7 a.m. shift, said Rialto police Lt. Reinhard Burkholder. It was 6:51 a.m. when a man lying in wait for Contreras walked up from behind -- no more than 20 feet from the plant's entrance -- and shot him in the head in the presence of several co-workers, Burkholder said. "There was no argument or no words spoken," Burkholder said. "It appears the suspect knew exactly who he was going after." As the 35-year-old San Bernardino resident fell to the ground, his assailant shot him one more time, then calmly left the scene in a light brown or tan Saturn-type car, Burkholder said.


Houston blast kills one, shakes neighborhood

Houston, TX - One man died in an explosion that heavily damaged American Elastomer Products Co. in southeast Houston and rocked a surrounding industrial park, officials said. The blast occurred at 5301 Polk around 11:30 a.m. and rattled the neighborhood for blocks around, officials said. A total of 44 other people escaped without injury. "We have all other employees accounted for,'' assistant Houston Fire Chief Omero Longoria. Walls and roof portions of the warehouse blew out after a vat of material used in a rubber manufacturing process exploded, Longoria said. The name of the man who died was not released.


Cuming County, NE Farmer Killed By Cow

NE - A northeast Nebraska man has died... after being attacked by a cow on his Cuming County farm. Authorities say the cow attacked 47-year-old Lowell Horst while he was in the pen with the animal, Friday afternoon. It pinned him in the corner, where he couldn't get away. Horst's 8-year-old son saw the whole thing... and deputies say the boy actually drove the family pick-up three miles-- to his uncle's house-- to get help. When sheriff's deputies arrived, Horst was aleady dead.


Train strikes tractor, leaves farmer dead

VARNER, NE — A farmer whose John Deere tractor was caught on railroad tracks a mile and one-half south of Varner was struck by a northbound Union Pacific freight train and killed about 2:40 p.m. Friday. Lincoln County Coroner Jimmy Hawkins pronounced the man dead at the scene but declined to release his name until next of kin are notified. He was believed to be a Lincoln County farmer. “I saw the train coming and the tractor sitting on the tracks,” said David Davis of Star City, who witnessed the collision as he was driving on U.S. 65, which runs parallel to the railroad track. “I heard what sounded like an explosion and I saw the wheels come flying off the tractor. Then I called 911.”


Farmer caught in mixer bled to death

JOHNSTOWN, Ohio (AP) - A farmer who became trapped in a feed mixer broke his left leg and pelvis and bled to death, an autopsy released Saturday concluded. Trent Boudinot, 42, was doing maintenance work on the machine Friday morning when he became caught in the mixer's auger, a rotating, screw-like device, authorities said. An autopsy revealed that Boudinot's death was caused by the severing of femoral arteries where his legs met his pelvis, said Mickey Lymon, an investigator with the Licking County coroner's office.


Transit worker found fatally shot

New York, NY - A New York City Transit security guard was fatally shot while waiting to catch a bus on his way home from work in Brooklyn early Sunday, authorities said. James Plocica, 37, of East 64th Street in Mill Basin, was found by officers responding to a call of shots fired at 1 a.m. Authorities said he was lying unconscious at 2006 Ralph Ave. It did not appear that his wallet or other belongings were stolen, police said. Plocica, who transit officials said worked as an unarmed security guard at a Brooklyn subway yard, was shot once in the chest, police said. He was pronounced dead at Kings County Hospital Center, police said.


1 Dead In Kern Oil Well Explosion

McKittrick, CA - A worker was killed this morning in an oil well accident in Western Kern County. Captain Doug Johnston of the Kern County Fire Department says the worker backed his truck into a well which immediately exploded and burned. The explosion happened near Reward Road and Franco Western Road, about five miles north of the town of McKittrick.


Batavia man dies in Pike County train accident

PIKETON, OH – A Batavia man was killed Monday when he was struck by a train in southern Pike County. The man’s name and age were not immediately known, but Sheriff Larry Travis said the man was working on a piece of equipment near a set of railroad tracks just south of the Ohio Candle Co. when the accident occurred. The incident occurred at about 11 a.m. The man was struck by a northbound Norfolk and Southern train and pronounced dead at the scene. The body was taken to Hamilton County for an autopsy.


Worker killed in blast at Northeast Philadelphia restaurant

PHILADELPHIA, PA -- A worker servicing a machine at a Northeast Philadelphia restaurant was killed when the unit exploded Tuesday, a fire department spokesman said. The man was working on the compressor of an ice cream machine in the food preparation area of the Friendly's restaurant at the time of the blast, which was reported at 2:33 p.m., Executive Chief Daniel Williams said. No one else was injured, he said. A fire marshal and a hazardous materials unit were sent to the scene to make sure conditions were safe, Williams said. The cause of the blast is under investigation.


First Miner Killed This Year In Kentucky

PIKEVILLE, Ky. - Officials say a surface miner crushed by heavy equipment has become the first miner killed in Kentucky for 2007. Charles Griffith, 48, of Pikeville was operating an excavator yesterday at a mine in the Steele community in eastern Pike County, near the Kentucky-Virginia line, when the machine overturned, killing him. Chuck Wolfe of the Kentucky Environmental and Public Protection Cabinet says Griffith was working at Double E. Augering Mine Number three when the accident happened about 4:10 p.m.


Man killed in Koppel Steel accident

New Beaver, PA - A New Beaver Borough man was killed Tuesday in an industrial accident at the IPSCO Koppel Tubular Steel plant. Ronald W. Hackett, 45, was at work on a tube straightening machine about 8 a.m. Samuel A. Teolis, a deputy Lawrence County coroner, said the machine was very large and Hackett became caught in it. Medic Rescue workers transported him to Ellwood City Hospital, where Dr. David Simon pronounced him dead at 9:07 a.m


Miramar utility worker dies after being struck by backhoe

MIRAMAR, FL – A 53-year-old city utility worker was killed on Wednesday when he was struck by a construction backhoe, a police spokesman said. The death occurred around 10:30 a.m. while city workers replaced a water pipe in front of a home on the 6100 block of Southwest 37 Street, police spokesman Bill Robertson said. Robertson said a backhoe operator, the dead man's working partner, was operating the machine that struck him. Details were not immediately available.


Death on the highway, Two truckers killed in mystery crash

Tuxedo, NY — One truck driver was crushed under the wheels of his own trailer. The second driver's truck was engulfed in flames. The crash that killed two tractor-trailer drivers yesterday morning shut down the northbound lanes of the New York State Thruway for nearly nine hours. And officials might never know what went wrong. "There were no witnesses, and the two people involved are dead," said Ricky Peets, a state police investigator assigned to the Thruway. The drivers, both employed by New England Motor Freight, died at the scene of the 2:30 a.m. crash in the hamlet of Arden. The stage was set when Gary Akehurst, 58, of Fallston, Md., parked his tractor-trailer on the right shoulder of the three-lane Thruway, about 200 feet before the Arden Station Road overpass. Why Akehurst stopped is unclear. He did not report any problems to his dispatcher and nothing was noted in his log, Peets said. Akehurst was out of the cab and somewhere between his rig and the guardrail when his trailer was struck by another New England Motor Freight truck, driven by John Johnson III.


Construction site victim identified

SAN DIEGO, CA – A man who was directing a dump truck as it was backing up at a Rancho Bernardo construction site died Tuesday after the vehicle ran over him, officials said. The county Medical Examiner's Office identified the dead man as Jesus Saiz Leon, 63, of San Diego. Leon was directing the truck as it was about to drop off a load of asphalt when the driver lost sight of Leon and then felt the truck roll over something, a medical examiner's investigator said. The truck, owned by Superior Ready Mix, had been backing up at Pomerado Road and Grandee Place about 10:30 a.m., said San Diego police spokesman Gary Hassen.


Man killed in landfill accident

BUFORD, GA — A 63-year-old man was killed Tuesday when heavy equipment fell on him at a local landfill, police said. Cpl. Valerie Southard, spokeswoman for the Gwinnett County Police Department, said the man did not work at the Richland Creek Landfill but was an employee of another company doing work there. Southard declined to name the company or identify the man until his next of kin had been notified. Lt. Thomas Rutledge, spokesman for the Gwinnett County Fire Department, said workers were loading a Caterpillar-836 compactor tractor onto a trailer when the man was crushed between the two pieces of equipment just before 3:30 p.m.


Man ignited gasoline in elevator to kill self, ex-girlfriend

LYNN, Mass. -- Raymond Echavarria dragged his ex-girlfriend, the mother of his two young children, into an elevator in the office building where she worked. He then used a lighter to ignite fumes from a can of gasoline, killing the couple in a fiery explosion. Authorities found the two badly burned bodies Wednesday inside the elevator, along with the 2-gallon fuel container, the lighter and a knife. Investigators were treating the slaying as a murder-suicide. The district attorney's office said Echavarria, 23, forced Xiomara Robles, 21, into the elevator shortly after she returned from a lunch break to the office building in the suburb of Lynn. Moments later, office workers heard an explosion inside the elevator, which became engulfed in flames.


Construction Worker Falls to His Death

Honolulu, HI -A 52-year old construction worker was killed on the job Wednesday after falling from a 46th-floor lanai. It happened at the Moana Pacific Condo project on Kapiolani Blvd. between Pensacola and Piikoi streets. The worker is Frank Montayre of Honolulu, an employee for Permasteelisa, which is a subcontractor for the project. A detective on the scene says Montayre was caulking the lanai when he fell and wasn't tied to a safety line. No one was with Montayre before he fell. Detectives are investigating whether he might have tripped and then gone over the railing.


Police prevented more bloodshed in shootout

New York, NY - A gunman claimed the lives of three men before he was killed by authorities in Manhattan late Wednesday, police say. David Garvin was ready to die in cold blood -- and to take others with him. A chilling surveillance videotape released by police Thursday shows the dishonorably discharged Marine confronting, pursuing and shooting two auxiliary police officers on Sullivan Street in Greenwich Village on Wednesday night "He was heavily armed and prepared to kill at will," a grim-faced Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said at an afternoon news conference Thursday, less than 24 hours after Garvin, 42, in quick succession killed pizzeria worker Alfred Romero and auxiliary officers Nicholas Pekearo and Eugene Marshalik.


Worker Killed In Fall At Fort Worth Hospital

FORT WORTH, TX - Investigators are trying to determine if a man's frantic effort to avoid lightning, during Tuesday afternoon's severe weather, may have led to his death. Officials with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration spent the day at John Peter Smith Hospital, where a masonry worker fell to his death. Company officials call it a freak accident. Just before Tuesday's storm hit Tarrant County, the contractor at the new JPS patient tower saw lightning in the distance. According to Lucia Construction Inc. subcontractor Troy Garrett, "The order was given to come off the scaffolding." The accident happened as employees attempted to get out of the weather. "Charles Cannon stumbled off the scaffold even with all the safety features in place," Garrett said.


3 government employees killed in crash

FOLKSTON, GA - Three Georgia Department of Human Resources employees were killed instantly Wednesday morning when the vehicle they were in slammed into the back of a logging truck at a Folkston intersection. Witnesses said they saw a white GMC Safari van traveling about 60 mph ram into the back of a log truck stopped at the intersection of Georgia 252 and Indian Trail, about one-quarter of a mile south of Charlton County High School. The speed limit at the intersection is 35 mph. Georgia State Patrol trooper J.F. Taylor said the three fatalities are the van's driver, Corientha Ann Jones, 59, of Blackshear, and Nahunta residents Elizabeth Jones, 23, and Jimmy Herrin, 62. A fourth occupant of the van, John Robinson, 26, of Nahunta, was pulled from the van by Camden County Fire Rescue workers, who used cutting tools to remove the roof from the Safari. The driver of the log truck owned by Hutchinson Trucking, based in Meridian, was identified as John Phillip Dick, 24, of Darien. Both Robinson and Dick were taken to Shands Jacksonville, investigators said.


Two workers killed by fumes at Port Manatee

Port Manatee, Florida - Manatee County Fire Rescue says two ship workers were killed when fumes invaded the hull where they were working at Port Manatee. The two men, one in his 20's and the other in his 30's, were overcome by the fumes as they worked below deck. Investigators say the fumes could be nitrogen. Rescue workers say other crew members were alerted by an alarm, went below to check and found the men unconscious. They brought the stricken men to the deck, where they were met by Manatee Fire Rescue crews. Paramedics tried in vain to revive the men. The Coast Guard Marine Safety Office will head the investigation into the deaths. Investigators do not believe the men are U.S. citizens. The "Sol Do Brasil" is registered in Liberia and is owned by a German shipping company. There were a total of 19 crew members on board. The crew was transporting orange juice.


Man crushed to death by semi

FOND DU LAC - A 53-year-old Ripon man is dead after a semi trailer he was repairing fell on him at a Fond du Lac business this morning. The incident occurred at E & G Repair, N5756 U.S. 151, about 9:15 a.m., said Fond du Lac County Sheriff’s Department Capt. Dean Will. A 36-year-old Fond du Lac man also was injured and taken to St. Agnes Hospital where he is expected to be treated and released, a hospital spokeswoman said. The names of the individuals are not being released at this time pending notification of their families, Will said.


Road worker killed in accident on highway

TULSA, Okla. The Oklahoma Highway Patrol says a woman could face a criminal charge after her vehicle hit and killed a road worker as he was patching potholes on U-S 75 in Tulsa. Troopers allege the woman exhibited physical signs of drug use and marijuana was found in her vehicle. Trooper Ricky Humdy says the patrol could seek a negligent homicide count against her. The patrol hasn't identified the victim, but he's a Tulsan in his 20s. Troopers say the man died when the car swerved from the eastbound lanes of the highway onto the right shoulder where he and two others were working.


Dispute Spurred Las Colinas Shooting

IRVING, TX -- Police on Friday arrested a worker after he allegedly shot and killed a co-worker during an argument at a Las Colinas mid-rise office building. The suspect, whose identity was pending, was taken into custody without incident following the shooting, which occurred about 10 a.m. at the Las Colinas Towers. The building houses several businesses, and was placed on lockdown while police investigated the incident. A sign outside indicates that General Motors workers share part of the space. No other injuries were reported.


Construction worker dead of head injury after fall from beam

TOMS RIVER, NJ — Police, paramedics and firefighters tried desperately to save the life of a 28-year-old Union County man who later died after a fall at a construction site Thursday afternoon. Jeffrey Sack, 28, of Winfield Park was pronounced dead at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune after suffering a fatal head injury in a fall at a construction site on Route 37, Chief Michael G. Mastronardy said. Sack had been walking on a steel beam when he fell and landed on a cement surface several stories down, Mastronardy said.


Construction Worker Dies After 30-Foot Fall

Bridgeport, CT - A 28-year-old construction worker was pronounced dead at St. Vincent's Medical Center in Bridgeport on Saturday after he fell off the roof of a home that is under construction in the Holland Hill section of town. According to both the Police and Fire departments, officers and firefighters responded to a call at approximately 10:15 a.m. at 25 Country Road where a construction worker with AD Builders of Albany, N.Y., had apparently fallen off of a two-story roof and was in need of medical attention. When officials arrived on scene they found Thomas Canfield of New York in the basement of the home lying in the fetal position on his right side, bleeding from his ear, police said.


Eastchester police officer from Mahopac collapses, dies on job

EASTCHESTER, NY - A 54-year-old, veteran Eastchester police patrol officer died this morning of an apparent heart attack, just before completing his overnight shift, police said. Joseph DePippo, a married father of two who lived in Mahopac, was rushed to Lawrence Hospital in Bronxville, where he was pronounced dead upon arrival, said Eastchester police Chief Timothy Bonci. "I've been at the hospital all morning," Bonci said at 12:45 p.m. and noted: "The hospital was full of officers. Obviously, that reflects on how people felt about him. He was a really good guy, not a bad thing to say about him. He was a good officer, always reliable. He took very little sick time." DePippo worked as a patrol officer and had been with the department for 31 years. He was born and raised in Eastchester and moved to Mahopac after getting married, Bonci said.


Man Killed After Truck Driver Allegedly Jumps From Cab

Searcy, AR - If you commute into the state's capital city from the Searcy area, you ran into quite a roadblock Friday morning. Highway 67-167 was closed for hours after two tractor-trailers collided. One person was killed. It happened just before 7 a.m. Friday. The highway was closed for nearly five hours. The accident happened right in the heart of Searcy, at exit 44. Southbound traffic was diverted around the scene straight into the city. The accident killed 28-year-old Charles Inloes Jr. of Batesville. He was hauling 80,000 pounds of empty glass bottles. Police say long skid marks indicate he hit the brakes hard.


Border agents killed in crash

LAS CRUCES, NM — Two U.S. Border Patrol agents were killed Thursday night while on duty after their patrol vehicle rolled several times on a scarcely traveled highway in southwest New Mexico. The single-vehicle crash occurred on N.M. Highway 338 near Cotton City, between Animas and Interstate 10, 20 to 30 miles southwest of Lordsburg in Hidalgo County. The agents were assigned to the Border Patrol's Lordsburg station. Their names were not released pending family notification. But news of the tragedy spread among friends who described one of the men, a 24-year-old brand-new agent from Pennsylvania, as smart, likable and dedicated to his job.


Texan falls to his death at Port of Shreveport-Bossier

Shreveport, TX - A Texas man fell to his death Friday morning while working on a communications tower at the Port of Shreveport-Bossier in an unincorporated area of southeast Caddo. Authorities said they were unsure how far Anthony Shands fell. The 72-year-old Gilmer resident had been connecting cables on the 150-foot tower for about an hour, according to Caddo sheriff's spokeswoman Cindy Chadwick. Shands was wearing a harness as he worked, but it had not been determined whether the equipment malfunctioned or may have been misused, Chadwick said.


Wharton County game warden shot and killed in high speed chase Friday night

PIERCE, TX - Texas Parks and Wildlife Game Warden Justin Hurst, who would have turned 34 today, was shot and killed following a high-speed chase that started on Alternate U.S. Highway 90 Friday night. Capital murder charges are expected to be filed today against a 26-year-old Wharton County man who led the chase. He is under guard at Oak Bend Hospital in Rosenberg where he is being treated for gunshot wounds, according to a news release from the Department of Public Safety. The pursuit started around 11:30 p.m. after a game warden spotted the man between East Bernard and Eagle Lake and suspected him of illegally hunting from the road. When he approached the vehicle, the man fled.


Rock fall kills worker in Washington state mine

METALINE FALLS Wash. -- A 43-year-old Montana man was killed Thursday in a rock fall while working underground in a lead and zinc mine, a mine spokesman said. Phillip Markhart of Red Lodge was killed while doing underground development work in the Pend Oreille Mine north of Metaline Falls, spokesman David W. Godlewski said. The mine was shut down after the accident and federal and state agencies were notified, mine general manager Mark Brown said in a news release.

The underground mine about 10 miles south of the Canadian border reopened in January 2004 after being closed since 1977. The accident was the first fatality since the mine reopened. Markhart was an employee of The Redpath Group, a mine development company that contracts with Teck Cominco American Inc., which is headquartered in Spokane.
Teck Cominco American is a subsidiary of Vancouver, British Columbia-based Teck Cominco Ltd.


WORKER'S DEATH PROBED BY STATE

GLENDALE, CA -- State workplace-safety officials on Thursday investigated the death of a 40-year-old Lancaster carpenter who was run over by a bulldozer at the $324 million Americana at Brand construction site.

Eddie Francisco Montoya was struck about 12:30 p.m. Wednesday at the 15.5-acre site along Brand Boulevard and died at the scene. Work resumed Thursday on the mixed-use shopping center and residential project slated to open next year.

California Department of Occupational Safety and Health investigators spent about three hours at the scene Wednesday. They believe the bulldozer's driver, who was backing up after moving soil, didn't see Montoya, said Dean Fryer, a Cal-OSHA spokesman.
Montoya was an employee of HB Parkco of Costa Mesa, a concrete subcontractor preparing the building's foundations. Inquiries about the incident were referred to the developer, Los Angeles-based Caruso Affiliated.


Shot guard finishes shift, dies

OAKLAND, CA -- Colleagues and even police were astonished by the case of a security guard who finished his shift and drove home after being mortally wounded by a stray bullet.

At home, Demetrio Baltazar's 11-year-old son tried to help him put a bandage on his head, but Baltazar's condition worsened, Oakland police Sgt. Jim Rullamas said. Baltazar died Wednesday in the hospital.

Investigators believe Baltazar, 59, was the random victim of a bullet from a shooting that took place nearby Sunday afternoon. That shooting, which resulted in injuries but no fatalities, was under investigation and did not appear to have any connection to Baltazar, Rullamas said.


Construction accident kills worker in West Philly

Philadelphia, PA -- A 47-year-old construction worker was killed this morning when a front-end loader fell on him at a West Philadelphia work site, police said.

The worker, not immediately identified, was pronounced dead at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania ay 10:07 a.m., about a half-hour after the accident at the site on the 400 block of North 62nd Street in Carroll Park.


Freak accident kills flagpole worker in St. Paul;

St. Paul, MN -- A flagpole repairman was killed Wednesday in St. Paul when a heavy metal ball fell off the pole he was working on and hit him in the head.

"It shouldn't have fallen off, and of all the areas to hit, it shouldn't have hit him," said Joan White, the victim's wife. Her 63-year-old husband, Gene White, who owned Twin Cities Flag Source in Anoka, was hit outside a Perkins restaurant about 1:30 p.m. He was pronounced dead later at Regions Hospital.

The metal ball that hit her husband weighed more than 10 pounds and is bigger than a bowling ball. It screwed into the top of the 70-foot flagpole. James Honerman, a spokesman for Minnesota OSHA, said Wednesday afternoon that his agency is investigating. He said that objects falling on workers have resulted in 15 deaths in Minnesota in the past five years. The agency also has investigated nine injuries resulting from falling objects at work in that time, he said.


Cab Driver Dies in Long Island Crash

CENTRAL ISLIP, Long Island -- A Long Island cabbie was killed when he crashed his taxi into two telephone poles and a fire hydrant in Central Islip. Suffolk County police said Preston Lawrence, 51, of Brentwood was driving a Comfort Ride Taxi at 2:15 Wednesday morning when he may have suffered a heart attack and lost control of the wheel. Lawrence was transported to Southside Hospital where he was pronounced dead.


Volunteer fireman killed fighting house fire in Hamilton Co.

CHATTANOOGA Tenn. -- A volunteer fireman honored as his department's firefighter of the year for 2006 was killed battling a house blaze in northern Hamilton County early Friday, emergency officials said.

Shane Daughetee, 24, was involved in a search and rescue operation inside the burning house in the Harrison area when he fell through the floor into the basement, Hamilton County Emergency Services spokeswoman Amy Maxwell said in a statement.
Authorities said Daughetee was married.


Trooper killed

East Quogue, NY -- An 18-year veteran state trooper was killed yesterday in a car accident after hitting a patch of black ice while on patrol in East Quogue, state police said. Jose Rosado, 45, of Deer Park, is the first state trooper stationed on Long Island to die in the line of duty in 10 years.

Rosado arrived at the barracks at 7 a.m. for a 12-hour shift, Heesch said. He was traveling south on County Road 104 south of Sunrise Highway about 9 a.m. when he hit black ice on a curve and lost control of his patrol vehicle, a 2006 Chevrolet Tahoe. It spun around into the northbound lane and struck a 2005 Chevrolet Suburban.


MAN DIES IN PLANT ACCIDENT

Chicago, IL -- A 20-year-old man died this week after his head got entangled in a hydraulic compressor at a southwest suburban distribution plant. Shawn Menzie, of Harvey, was operating a cardboard compressor Monday at Sertoma Centre at 4100 W. 127th St. in Alsip when he got caught, Alsip Police Chief Robert Troy said. Menzie was feeding pieces of cardboard into the machine and apparently stuck his head into the apparatus, Troy said. It was not clear why Menzie stuck his head into the machine, Troy said. Menzie died from blunt trauma to his head and neck.


Shreveport store owner dies; Teen faces first-degree murder charge

SHREVEPORT La. -- A store owner who was shot Monday afternoon during an apparent robbery at her business, died early Tuesday. Maeung Ram Ellis, 48, died at 3:30 a.m. at LSU Hospital, Shreveport police spokeswoman Kacee Hargrave said.

Ellis was shot in the head after one of the youths reportedly demanded money, which she refused to hand over.


Billiards owner's death may be result of beating

Police remain tight-lipped about an apparent homicide case involving a man found dead inside his billiards business last week. However, a search warrant affidavit made public Tuesday reveals Tri Xuan Phan may have been brutally beaten.

According to the affidavit filed in 3rd District Court, police discovered 36-year-old Phan face up in a pool of blood on Jan. 10, much of it covering his face. Several teeth, nearly an entire set, were found near his body.


Farmington / Nurse faces lesser charge in fatal crash; Teen worker killed as she weeded by road

Minneapolis, MN -- Exhausted at the end of her third overnight shift in as many days, Laura Ann Brockhaus left the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Minneapolis and drove home. Brockhaus, a registered nurse, would later tell police she had worked 12 1/2-hour shifts, from 7:30 p.m. to 8 a.m., three days in a row. In her daylight hours, she had slept five or six hours one day and little more than three the next.

And she would tell police she tried her best but that there was nothing she could do to revive the teen who was struck by her car and then thrown to her death July 27. Less than a mile from her Farmington home, Brockhaus, 40, allegedly fell asleep at the wheel of her car near a busy Farmington intersection. The car jumped the curb of Pilot Knob Road and crashed into 18-year-old Jacquelynn Devney as the summer worker weeded a sidewalk trail. A Dakota County coroner later determined that Devney, who was weeks away from starting college, died instantly.


Tractor flips, killing Bedford County supervisor

BLUE RIDGE Va. -- A Bedford County supervisor was killed Thursday when his tractor flipped on a steep hill, pinning him beneath the machine, officials said. Montvale Supervisor Bobby Pollard, who was 71, was feeding his cattle when the tractor flipped, family members told County Administrator Kathleen Guzi. A home health care nurse visiting a neighbor found Pollard dead under his tractor, Guzi said.


Accident kills worker at I-15 project site

OGDEN, UT -- A road construction worker from Twin Falls, Idaho, was killed Sunday when the doors of a belly dumper accidentally closed on him while he was inside. Weber County Sheriff's Sgt. J.P. Hansen said the man's body was discovered by his son, who has been working with his father as a subcontractor on the I-15 road-widening project.

The man, 58, was apparently removing dirt from inside the belly dumper, preparing it for the next work shift, when the accident occurred. Safety chains that are normally attached to prevent the doors from closing apparently were not hooked up, Hansen said. The man's name was not released Sunday pending the notification of family.


Co-Pilot Lands Flight As Pilot Dies

McALLEN Texas -- The pilot of a Continental Airlines flight became ill after takeoff and was later pronounced dead after the plane made an emergency landing, a company spokeswoman said. The 210 passengers on Saturday's flight, which departed from Houston, were never in danger and the co-pilot landed the plane safely, Continental spokeswoman Macky Osorio said.

The airline said only that the pilot suffered a "serious medical problem." Continental believes the pilot died of natural causes, Osorio said. The pilot's name was not released.


Police arrest teen in New Albany businessman's death

NEW ALBANY Miss. -- Authorities say they have arrested a New Albany teenager who had worked part-time at a convenience store where the owner was shot to death. The name of the 16-year-old was not made public. He was arrested this past weekend and ordered held at the Union County Jail, said Police Chief David Grisham.

Hamza Ahmed Basha, 38, was shot this past Thursday at Central Station, his convenience store on Central Avenue off the U.S. 78 bypass. An autopsy confirmed that Basha died from a single shotgun wound to the back of the head. Basha's body will be returned to Minnesota, where he'd spent most of his life, for burial.


Brookville man killed in logging accident

Borrkville, PA -- A logger was killed in Jefferson County when the butt end of the tree he was cutting swung around and pinned him against another tree, state police said. Dennis A. Clinger, 41, of Brookville, died at about 9:15 a.m. Wednesday at a logging site in Knox Township. The coroner ruled Clinger's death an accident. State police would not say who owned the logging site.


Dock worker's death ruled accidental

Carroll Township, PA -- The body of a Washington County dock worker was found Thursday morning on the edge of a docked barge at the Burrell Coal Yard along Route 837 in Carroll Township, near Monongahela, the Washington County Coroner said.

Blaine Edward Martin Jr., 55, of Donora, died of head injuries, said Coroner S. Timothy Warco, who ruled the death an accident. The body was found on a barge that was docked on the Monongahela River next to a towboat.

Martin's body was found by co-workers after his wife called his employer yesterday morning to say that Martin hadn't returned home from work Wednesday, Warco said.
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