As ways to die go, being sucked into a meat grinder has to be one of the worst of all time.
While working the night shift as a sanitation worker, a 19-year-old teen was cleaning down a meat grinder. The grinder, used to prepare the filling for Tina’s Burritos in Vernon, was activated while he was far too close to the mechanics. It is unclear how or why the machine turned on with the teen inside.
He tried to escape, but he was pulled inside the meat grinder. According to the other employees, he could be heard shouting for help. Staff working the after-hours shift rushed to save him, but it was too late. Despite their efforts to pull him free or turn the machine off, they failed in their attempts.
He had already gone far too deep into the machine, and he was ground to death.
Gory Meat Grinder Death Not Suspicious
A full investigation is underway into how the meat grinder could have turned on with the teen inside it. But, at present, the situation is not being considered suspicious. No foul play is suspected in the death of the young man in the burrito plant.
It is very odd that the machine was able to turn on while the teen was cleaning it. You would think something like an industrial meat grinder would have a million safety stops before it turned on, to prevent people from being sucked in and dying. There will have to be a full investigation into who is responsible for the teen’s gruesome death.
A report from ABC noted the emotional distress the other employees appeared to be in. They could be seen sitting outside, trying to come to terms with the horror they had all witnessed.
I imagine that the machine will be taken out of commission until a full investigation is made. Even after that, I would hope that they retire it. I don’t care how much they clean it, I’m not eating a burrito made with a man-tainted meat grinder machine.