Man crushed by falling log at sawmill

Sep 21, 2018 News

The scene after the incident

A 20-year-old labourer of 100 Block 22 Squatting Area Wismar, Linden, was crushed by a falling log and subsequently died yesterday morning at the Linden Hospital Complex.
Stephan Braithwaite, aka ‘Grinch’, was reportedly engaged in maintenance work on a truck at his place of employment, R.I Forest Products, Sawmill and Lumber yard located at 26 Blueberry Hill Wismar, when the incident occurred.
According to reports Braithwaite was about to draw fuel from the tank to put into a filter. It was while in the process of extracting the fuel that one of the logs became dislodged and fell off the truck pinning the man to the ground.
Other reports revealed that the impact and weight of the log which was lodged on Braithwaite’s abdomen and thighs caused his intestines to protrude.
Several employees who were attracted by the commotion rushed to the man’s assistance. They managed to remove the log and rush him to the Linden Hospital Complex. He was however pronounced dead on arrival.
Francis Braithwaite, the man’s mother, said that the incident occurred after a co-worker reportedly released the chains securing logs on a truck. One of the logs became dislodged and fell pinning her son in the process.
The distraught woman said that her son had been servicing the truck to return to the interior when the incident occurred.
The man had reportedly tried to run out of harm’s way, but it was too late.