Worker dies after forklift accident

Inquiry opened at recycling site

An employee at a recycling company in Abington died after he fell off a forklift and was crushed by steel container bottoms on Tuesday, officials said.

Donald Schaefer, 67, of Braintree, was taken to South Shore Hospital, where he was pronounced dead from his injuries,

The worker fell off of the load to the ground and several steel container bottoms fell on him.

Plymouth District Attorney Timothy Cruz’s office said in a statement on Wednesday.

At Troupe Waste and Recycling, located at 1477 Bedford St., an employee called Abington police around 1:40 p.m. stating that Schaefer fell off a forklift, the statement said.

A preliminary investigation revealed that Schaefer was working with two other men to offload several steel container bottoms, the statement said.

Schaefer was standing atop one of the loads to provide counterweight while another man was operating a tractor with a forklift attached, it said.

When the load shifted, Schaefer fell off of the load to the ground and several steel container bottoms fell on top of him, the statement said.

The men working with Schaefer immediately pushed the load off him and called 911, the statement said. When first responders arrived at the scene, they located Schaefer and started life-saving efforts.

Abington police and State Police assigned to Cruz’s office are investigating. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, which oversees workplace standards for the Department of Labor, is also investigating.

On average, 67 workers die each year as a result of injuries sustained on the job in Massachusetts.