63-year-old employee crushed by 5,000-lb. mixer drum at manufacturing plant

DODGE CENTER, Minn. (KTTC/Gray News) – A 63-year-old man was crushed to death by a 5,000-pound mixer drum at a manufacturing plant in Minnesota.

Teofilo Gonzalez, a 10-year employee of Con-Tech Manufacturing, died Tuesday morning around 10:30, KTTC reported.

According to his co-workers, Gonzalez was cutting a crossbeam support on a dolly that was supporting a 5,000-pound mixer drum when the dolly failed, causing the mixer to fall on Gonzalez.

Other employees used two forklifts to remove the drum from Gonzalez to perform CPR until paramedics arrived.

A spokesperson for the Minnesota Department of Labor said officials with the Minnesota Occupational Safety and Health Administration have opened an investigation into the employee’s death.

“We will inspect work areas for safety or health hazards, try to determine what caused or contributed to the accident and review whether existing OSHA standards were violated,” the spokesperson said. “The goal is to help avoid a recurrence for similar accidents.”