71-year-old worker pinned under equipment in cranberry bog in Massachusetts dies
A 71-year-old man died in a tragic accident at a cranberry bog on Cape Cod Friday morning.
The man, who has not been identified, was working at a bog behind County Road in Bourne, Massachusetts when something went wrong just after 8 a.m.
In a statement, police said he was "operating a piece of equipment in the cranberry bogs, when it rolled over on top of him, pinning him under the equipment." Fire officials explained that the man was using the tractor to sand the bog in preparation for next season when something went wrong. The man had been in the industry for decades.
"When the tractor that this gentleman was driving started to go down a ramp to get to the bog, it flipped over, and he was trapped. His fellow workers who were with him did their best to get him out of there and they did" State Representative Stevem Xiaros said.
Officers and paramedics rushed in and attempted CPR, but the man died. The victim's identity has not been released.
State and local police are looking into what happened, along with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). The medical examiner's office was also called in as part of the probe.
"The Bourne Police Department's collect thoughts are with the family, friends, and co-workers of the victim in this incident," police said in their statement.
Xiaros said that he spoke with the owner of the cranberry bog on Friday. The bog has been in the man's family for five generations.
"He's just a hard-working man and he 's very upset and struggling with the loss of his friend," Xiaros explained.
No other information is available at this point in the investigation.
Bourne, Massachusetts is about 57 miles south of Boston.