A day laborer died Monday after a piece of equipment fell and crushed him at a Dallas business, Dallas Fire Rescue officials said.
It happened at about 11:50 a.m. at the Environmental Testing Lab in the 11000 block of Indian Trail.
Gregg Pitcher, 45, of Richardson, was sweeping the grounds when a 12,000 to 16,000 pound tank used to hold liquids toppled over and crushed him, a Dallas police spokesman said.
A co-worker who discovered the toppled piece of equipment and saw the victim trapped underneath called 911. The owner of the company lifted the piece of equipment off of Pitcher with a forklift, but it was too late, Dallas Fire Rescue officials said.
He was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Dallas Police Department and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are conducting their investigations into what happened.
"One of the wheels was missing. That may have caused the center of gravity to shift," said Ernest Gurule of Dallas Fire Rescue. "But he had no responsibility to do anything that would make him come into contact with that piece of equipment. He was a day laborer."
