Federal authorities are investigating a rockslide that killed a employee at a quarry in Sterling on Thursday, and the Choose Board within the Worcester County city has issued a cease-and-desist letter to the corporate that operates the location.
Sterling police dispatchers obtained a name round 8 a.m. for the rockslide, Chief Sean Gaudette mentioned throughout an emergency Choose Board assembly Thursday afternoon. Upon arrival, officers and firefighters discovered a “large chunk of rock wall had slid and fallen on top of an excavator,” he added.
“At that point, the fire department was working our rescue operations … they were unable to find any signs of life,” Gaudette mentioned.
“Crews used camera equipment to assess the scene of the collapse,” the Worcester County District Lawyer’s Workplace mentioned in a press release.
Responders pronounced the employee lifeless at 8:39 a.m., the workplace added, with crews persevering with to “work to the recover the deceased” into the afternoon.
Authorities haven’t launched the employee’s identification.
“Please avoid the area. There is no safety threat to the public,” the Sterling Hearth Division mentioned in a morning social media submit.
Sterling, a rural city of roughly 8,000 folks, is roughly 40 miles west of Boston.
Demolition and excavation firm, Onyx Company, operates the quarry website on Chocksett Street, off Route 12 and close to Interstate 190. The corporate posted on-line it has closed all areas from Thursday by means of the weekend, saying it should resume enterprise on Monday.
That got here earlier than the Choose Board’s emergency assembly.
“Our hearts are with those involved at this time,” Chairwoman Kirsten Newman mentioned. “As the permit-granting authority for earth removal, I think it is important for us to discuss that permit at this time.”
“I would like to suggest that we issue a cease-and-desist for the time being until we can get a full investigation from the authorities,” she added. “I also want to thank our local first responders who went into an unknown situation and put their lives at risk to try and recover the trapped worker.”
A person reached at a enterprise quantity related to the quarry mentioned “I have nothing at this time.”
In February 2018, Onyx introduced its Sterling quarry location.
“Whether you be a small landscaper or heavy civil contractor, we have the locations and expertise to provide you with all your sand or aggregate needs,” the corporate posted on-line on the time.
The corporate posted in January that it transforms chunks of rocks into mixture supplies which are used for roads, drainage, retaining partitions, and different infrastructure.
Federal businesses and quite a few native and state departments had been known as to the quarry in response to the rockslide.
The Occupational Security and Health Administration secured the location, with the Division of Labor Mine Security and Health Administration inspecting the property to find out the protection of shifting ahead with retrieval efforts, the Worcester DA’s Workplace mentioned.
“This is a tragic event that none of us really want to be reporting on,” Choose Board Vice Chairman David Smith mentioned, “but as the governing body, I believe it is our due diligence to issue a cease-and-desist order.”
Herald wire companies had been used on this report.
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