Abstract: Employee #1 and a coworker were working inside the hopper portion of a Heil Company Formula 500 tailgate, 25-cubic-yard compactor (Model No. 207-2860) mounted on a Mack Model RD6865 chassis in the yard of a small municipal waste disposal company. The truck was left running with the power-take-off switch in the engaged position. Control rods ran from the operator's station at the right rear of the truck up the right side, into the hopper at the top of the truck, then across to the center where the solenoid for the compactor operation was located. The rods in the compactor area were bent and the two employees were trying to repair them using pry bars and brute force. The truck operator entered the hopper area on the right side of the compactor, where the blade was fully extended. A second employee entered the hopper area on the left side to help. They stood on the compactor blade while attempting repairs. As one employee pulled down on rods, the other employee pulled up. Employee #1 got caught in the compactor and was crushed to death.