OSHA investigating Aug. 31 death at Bode work site
Man died when telehandler tipped at NEW Cooperative
September 7, 2018
Chad Thompson
cthompson@messengernews.net
BODE, IOWA —
A man died after the boom lift in which he was standing tipped over at a work site in Bode.
Humboldt County Sheriff Dean Kruger said the accident happened while the boom lift was extended 50 feet off the ground.
The accident was reported at NEW Cooperative in Bode on the afternoon of Aug. 31.
According to Kruger, the man was standing on the platform of a telehandler.
Another man was attempting to drive the boom while it was fully extended, Kruger reported.
“The telehandler tipped over, causing fatal injuries,” Kruger said in a written statement.
Officials have not released the men’s names.
According to Mark Walter, NEW Cooperative grain manager, the men were not employees of NEW Cooperative.
The Iowa Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation regarding the accident, according to Deborah Babb, a public service manager for OSHA.
Babb oversees safety compliance officers in the state.
OSHA requires employers to contact them within eight hours of a fatality.
Babb said OSHA was investigating Kern Construction, of West Bend.
A man who answered the phone for Kern Construction confirmed the two men were employees of the firm, but declined to comment further.
Bode firefighters, Humboldt Ambulance and the Humboldt County Sheriff’s Department responded to the accident at 4:22 p.m. on Aug. 31.
Kern Construction is a privately held company in West Bend, IA and is a Single Location business.
Categorized under Home Builders. Our records show it was established in 2008 and incorporated in Iowa. Current estimates show this company has an annual revenue of 171074 and employs a staff of approximately 2.