Victim identified in Winchester warehouse forklift accident
Michella Drapac
AUGUST 14, 2015
UPDATE - We now know the name of the man killed in a forklift accident at the National Fruit Product Company Inc. warehouse in Winchester on Monday.
The victim has been identified as 67 year-old Boyd Abrell of West Virginia. According to his obituary, he had worked at the company for about 20 years. A funeral service is set for Sunday.
WINCHESTER, VIRGINIA
Winchester police said a man is dead following a forklift accident at the National Fruit Product Company Inc. warehouse in Winchester on Monday.
The building is located at 550 Fairmont Ave, which is near the White House Foods building.
"Winchester Police, along with fire and rescue were dispatched to a forklift accident. Upon arrival, fire and rescue pronounced a 67-year-old male deceased," said Lt. Amanda Behan with the Winchester Police Department.
Behan said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the accident, along with the Winchester Police Department. Investigators said they do not believe there was any suspicious activity. The body has been sent to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in Manassas, Va. for an autopsy.
"It will be quite some time before we have all the results of the investigation," Behan said.
Police said the victim was from West Virginia and the family has been notified. His name has not yet been released.
David Gum, Jr. the president of the National Fruit Product Company, Inc., which produces products under the brand name White House, issued a statement. It reads in part,
"It is with great sadness that we have lost a member of the White House family in an incident at our Winchester south yard... We ask our community to pray for the family and the White House family as we work through our grief and loss."
Invesigators said the death is uncommon in Winchester.
"It has been several years since we've responded to an industrial type accident. We don't see them that often," Behan said.