A Florida tree-trimmer died in a horrifying accident when he was pulled headfirst into a woodchipper and decapitated Tuesday morning, authorities said.
The unidentified man was working with Carlton’s Tree Service, which had been contracted to deal with trees in the South Florida town of Ocean Ridge, local NBC affiliate WPTV reported.
The workers had just started the job at Ocean Ridge Town Hall on Tuesday morning when the devastating accident occurred around 9:30 a.m., according to the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
“The individual was working by themself doing tree trimming and feeding a woodchipper,” Town Manager Lynne Ladner told WPTV. “Other members of the crew saw it happening, is my understanding, and immediately began responding as did our staff and officers.”
No one else was injured in the traumatic incident. The federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration will investigate the accident.
The woodchipper was equipped with an emergency kill switch, but no one was around to hit it when the man fell in, local CBS affiliate WPEC reported.
Authorities said the man had a brother living in the South Florida region, but the rest of his family lives in Mexico, according to the Sun-Sentinel.
Ocean Ridge is a tiny seaside town about 55 miles north of downtown Miami. Ladner told WPTV the area hadn’t seen a workplace accident for at least 10 to 15 years.