Derrick Lawrence, age 45, from Mose Ambrose, passed away Monday night after an industrial accident in the Come By Chance and Sunnyside area.
According to Sgt. Boyd Merrill, media relations with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP), said the 45-year-old man was doing maintenance on a rock crusher’s pulley system when either his clothing or hand got caught in the machinery, dragging him underneath.
Merrill said the man was able to contact his supervisor before falling unconscious.
At around 6:45 p.m., workers were getting ready to shut down the site for the evening when their attention was drawn to the machine the victim was working on.
“They found him immediately,” said Merrill. “(The supervisor) ran around by the piece of machinery and he found him… (The supervisor) administered first aid and (the victim) succumbed to his injuries right then.”
The victim was taken to the Dr. G.B. Cross Hospital in Clarenville, where he was pronounced dead.
Merrill couldn’t comment on whether it’s common for workers to be doing maintenance on machinery without supervision.
“That’s something that the investigation will determine,” he said. “(Occupational Health and Safety officials) will be interviewing the people that operate these kinds of machinery and asking those specific questions.”
Merrill said the RCMP investigate a number of industrial accidents every year.
“Tragic as they are, they need to be investigated to determine what happened so we can possibly save lives in the future,” he said.
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