A FedEx employee died early Thursday at the Memphis International Airport hub, the third FedEx worker killed in an accident there over the past 40 months.
A woman, whose name was not released, was pronounced dead at the hub just after 12:30 a.m., according to Memphis Police.
Officers responded to a call of an accidental injury at 2907 Spranklel Avenue, on the airport property where FedEx operates its world hub.
The woman was part of a two-person team assigned to unload an aircraft, police said. She was found under a motorized mobile conveyor belt system. Police said it is unknown how the accident occurred.
The FedEx spokesman confirmed the death was a work-related accident but had no other details.
The company released a statement:
"Words cannot convey the sadness we feel over the loss of our team member in an accident at the Memphis hub. Our prayers are with our colleague's family, friends, and co-workers. We are cooperating with authorities in their investigation."
Memphis attorney Jeffrey Rosenblum, who has represented the families of the most recent two employees killed at the hub, said his clients have wanted FedEx to work with the vendors who make the equipment used at the hub.
“I question why there have been two and now three deaths’’ over the past 3.5 years, Rosenblum said. “In the years preceding, you have to go way back before you see another death.’’
The last death of a FedEx employee at the Memphis airport was almost exactly two years ago on Nov. 22, 2015. A cargo tug operator, Christopher Higginbottom, 39, was crushed by a loaded dolly he was towing.
He fell off the tug and was run over by the dolly, said Rosenblum, who argued the tug’s manufacturer should have installed a seat belt or other safety systems or provided warnings. There is an active lawsuit.
Before that, material handler Chandler Warren, 19, was crushed by a giant cargo lift on July 2, 2014.
The lift’s machinery with its accordion-like arms was being controlled by a fellow employee, up high near the plane’s cargo opening, Rosenblum said. That worker could not see that Warren, who was below, was in danger of being crushed, he said.
The equipment vendor should have installed motion sensors, buttons or other safety devices to shut off the lift before someone could be hurt, Rosenblum said.
That lawsuit with the vendor was settled out of court to the family’s satisfaction, he said.
Exceptions exist, but Tennessee law states when employees are hurt on the job their only remedy against their employer is a workers' compensation claim, Rosenblum said. He credited FedEx for pursuing the maximum amount of workers' comp for his clients.
“They want to pay the maximum benefit under the law,’’ Rosenblum said. “They did everything they were supposed to do with regard to those two claims.’’
But with a third hub death in 40 months, the attorney said FedEx should address the dangerous pattern at the hub.
“I think FedEx has a duty to tell every vendor, ‘We want to buy the safest pieces of equipment we can,' ’’ Rosenblum said. “ ‘We want our engineers to work with your engineers.' ’’
Glen Thomas, a spokesman for the airport and its police department, said earlier Thursday that he had little information on what happened but that Memphis Police are investigating.
"Certainly, it’s terrible news any time, but especially on Thanksgiving morning and certainly, our hearts go out to the employee and their family and all the co-workers over there," Thomas said.
==================
State regulators propose to fine FedEx $4,000 for a fatal workplace accident last Nov. 22 at the Memphis hub.
A cargo tug operator, Christopher Higginbottom, 39, was found crushed to death by a loaded dolly he was towing.
It was the second fatal accident within 18 months at the FedEx Express world hub at Memphis International Airport. Material handler Chandler Warren, 19, was crushed by a giant cargo lift on July 2, 2014.
FedEx is appealing the citation and proposed fine, handed down April 18 by the Tennessee Department of Labor and Workforce Development's Division of Occupational Safety and Health (TOSHA).
Investigators say they believe Higginbottom fell off his tug and was run over by the first in a train of three loaded dollies, according to documents obtained under a public records request.
There were no witnesses or video surveillance coverage, but FedEx security officers found Higginbottom beneath a dolly holding a 2,300-pound cargo container. His chest was crushed by the dolly's weight. The report showed Higginbottom's tug veered across an oncoming lane and clipped a tractor-trailer parked in a loading dock before coming to a halt.
TOSHA has focused on seatbelts as an issue in Higginbottom's death, with an investigation summary concluding, 'The company did not ensure the tug operator properly fastened the seatbelt around his waist while operating the tug.'
The violation, classified as 'serious,' is based on state and federal standards requiring employers to protect workers from serious or potentially lethal hazards such as ejection while operating a vehicle.
The citation said the violation was 'corrected during inspection.'
'The employer corrected the violation during the inspection by holding a training session for all tug operators that stressed the importance of always properly wearing the seatbelts while operating the tugs,' inspectors reported.
FedEx spokesman Jim Masilak said, “We remain saddened over the tragic accident involving Mr. Higginbottom, and reiterate our condolences to his family. Safety is a priority for FedEx, and all of our tug drivers receive safety training that includes the required use of seat belts. We will appeal the proposed fine.”
FedEx's notice of appeal didn't cite a specific grounds. During a May 2 informal conference with TOSHA, FedEx disputed that the personal protective equipment standard included seatbelts.
During a May 2 informal conference, FedEx Express director of safety Tom Lopez told TOSHA officials that Memphis International Airport did not require use of seatbelts.
'He also said new tugs are ordered from the manufacturer with seatbelts installed and that they were researching retrofitting existing tugs that did not have seatbelts,' TOSHA's Wade Gowan wrote in a memo.