Mississippi Sawmill Operator Fined for Alabama Worker’s Horrific Workplace Death

Sometimes horrific workplace accidents can happen in the blink of an eye. One moment a worker is working hard at his or her job, running through the motions of everyday tasks, the next he or she is caught up in a terrible accident, fighting for his or her life. Such was the case, unfortunately, at a Rex Lumber LLC sawmill in Troy, Alabama, in December, 2022. According to reports, 20-year-old sawmill worker and employee of multi-state sawmill company Rex Lumber, Evan Kilpatrick of Troy, Alabama, was killed while he was working on a piece of machinery at the sawmill in early December, 2022. An investigation into the tragic and fatal workplace accident revealed that Kilpatrick was clearing a jammed roller at the Troy location of the sawmill when “stored energy caused the infeed unit to close on him.” The U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) ultimately issued a “willful citation” to Rex Lumber in response to the fatal accident, citing that the company allowed workers to “perform maintenance on equipment without controlling hazardous energy sources” and “failed to review its energy control procedures regularly to ensure compliance and did not train employees on how to isolate stored energy in hydraulic accumulators.”

Even worse still, the fatal accident that took Kilpatrick’s life was not the first incident where workers were placed in danger by Rex Lumber, resulting in tragedy. In 2020 and 2021 workers at Rex Lumber locations in Florida were severely injured. One worker had to have his hand amputated after their hand became caught in a conveyor roller.

After the most recent fatal workplace accident in Troy, Alabama, OSHA levied fines against Rex Lumbar of $184,385. Rex Lumbar runs sawmills in Alabama, Connecticut, Florida, Massachusetts, Mississippi, and Virginia.

Justice for Mississippi Families of Workers Killed in Workplace Accidents

In Mississippi, when a worker is killed on the job in a fatal workplace accident, certain family members may be entitled to workers’ compensation death benefits under Mississippi workers’ compensation laws. Although nothing can replace the death of a loved one, Mississippi workers’ compensation death benefits can help certain close dependent family members financially after they experience a tragic loss as a result of a workplace accident. In order to determine whether you may be entitled to Mississippi workers’ compensation death benefits, it is best to speak with an experienced Mississippi workers’ compensation death benefits lawyer.

Legal Help Obtaining Workers Compensation Death Benefits in Mississippi

In Mississippi, the experienced Mississippi workers’ compensation lawyers at the law firm Lunsford Baskin & Priebe are here to help the families of workers who have been killed on the job. The experienced Mississippi workers’ compensation lawyers at Lunsford Baskin & Priebe offer a free and confidential consultation to learn about your case and to see if they can help you get benefits due. Contact the Mississippi workers’ compensation lawyers at Lunsford Baskin & Priebe today and speak to an attorney about your case for free.

Source:

alabamanow.com/2022/12/22/alabama-man-killed-in-saw-mill-accident-just-days-before-christmas/