People get crushed between or inside objects every year in workplace accidents. One of them just happened in Macon yesterday morning. WGXA TV reported on the tragedy.
According to the local coroner, the worker was crushed between a roll of paper and a forklift at the Gilmer Warehouse on Mead Road. The victim, a female, was conscious when first responders arrived, but then died at a local hospital during treatment.
OSHA confirmed to the news that they will investigate the accident. The last time this facility had an OSHA violation was in 2005 and it was fixed within 3 days.
Crushing accidents are particularly dangerous if someone is pinned for too long. When a large part of the body is pinned for more than 15 minutes, a phenomenon known as crushing injury syndrome can set in.
The crushed cells start to die off because they cannot get oxygen and nutrients. This leaves behind toxic waste products, but while the victim is still crushed they cannot do much harm.
But when the pressure is released, suddenly those toxins can now flood the body and overwhelm the organs, especially the kidneys. This may be what happened here, though without more details we can only speculate.
We wish to extend our condolences to the family of the killed worker, and we hope that the OSHA investigation proceeds smoothly.
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