Inspection Detail

Inspection: 312699440 - Organic Technologies Inc

Inspection Information - Office: Minnesota Department Of Labor And Industry

Investigation Summary

At approximately 2:00 p.m., on October 27, 2008, Employee #1 was working at a compost facility emptying leaves from plastic bags. He was working at ground level along with three other employees who were cutting open bags. When a supervisor realized that Employee #1 was missing, a search was initiated in the pile of leaves. Employee #1's body was found in an approximately 12-ft-deep pile of loose and bagged leaves. There were no witnesses to the accident but it appeared that Employee #1 was killed when a garbage/recycling truck dumped a load of bagged leaves on him and then he was pushed into the larger pile by a front end loader. The medical examiner ruled the official cause of death to be asphyxiation. Employee #1 was wearing all of the required personal protective equipment, including a high visibility vest and a hardhat.

Keywords: GARBAGE TRUCK, ASPHYXIATED, FRONT END LOADER, HARD HAT, WASTE PROC FAC, DUMP TRUCK, REFLECTIVE VEST, INATTENTION