Worker killed by wood chipper likely dragged in by snagged jacket, Michigan cops say
A man killed by a wood chipper was likely dragged in after his jacket got caught on a branch being fed in, Michigan police say.
West Bloomfield Police told local news outlets they were called to the home Monday morning after a man called 911 and reported his coworker was found inside the machine. The briefing was recorded by WJBK.
His coworkers, working in a Champlain Circle neighborhood at the time, then turned off the tree chipper, WDIV reported.
The crew proceeded to provide first aid to the 48-year-old man while he was conscious, Deputy Chief Curt Lawson said in the briefing.
Police arrived about two minutes after the initial call and applied a tourniquet, the Detroit Free Press reported. Tourniquets are typically placed around bleeding limps to help restrict blood flow and prevent blood loss.
The man died as medics were taking him to the hospital, according to The Detroit News.
“Every indication at this point is that his jacket may have gotten caught on a branch that was being fed into the wood chipper,” Lawson said in the video recorded by WJBK.
While his death appears to have been a “tragic accident,” the Detroit Free Press reported that investigations by the local police department and the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration will continue.
Police did not release the name of the company the crew was working for, WJBK reported, but said the team was working at a private home.
“Wood chippers are one of the most dangerous machines used in the tree service industry,” OSHA said in a 2016 news release.
A 2018 study published in the National Library of Medicine looked at 113 wood chipper-related worker deaths from 1982-2016. Of those deaths, 41 victims got caught in the machine.
“In-depth, comprehensive, and up-to-date studies are needed to identify causal, risk, and contributing factors and assess the current control measures so that an effective and proactive prevention approach can be developed,” the study found at the time.
West Bloomfield Township is located in the northwest Detroit metropolitan area.
Tootsie Roll worker lost part of finger at factory, feds say. Now company faces fine
After worker drowns in manure pit, Colorado dairy farm faces $25,000 fine, feds say
Health care employees to wear panic buttons as assaults triple at Missouri hospital
