Rick Walters, an investigator for the Coroner’s Office, said Martinez stepped into a chute and got caught in a waste auger. An autopsy was scheduled for Sunday morning.
Fresh Mark provided a statement Saturday night: “This afternoon just before 5 p.m., we experienced a work-related fatality at our Canton facility. Our primary concern rests with the wellbeing of this employee’s family, as well as with the safety and wellbeing of all our employees in the Canton and other Fresh Mark facilities. We are working with authorities to determine the facts regarding this incident.”
This is at least the second worker to die at the company’s Canton plant.
In 2011, a worker at Fresh Mark’s Canton plant was electrocuted when he tried to plug in a fan while standing in water, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
According to a company spokesperson in 2011, it was the first work-related death at the plant since it opened in 1976.
Fresh Mark sells ham, bacon, lunch meat, pepperoni and hot dogs under the Superior’s and Sugardale brands.