MOUNT VERNON — A construction worker with FM Earth, a subcontracting company with Corna Kokosing Construction Co., was killed Tuesday morning at the Rolls-Royce facility, said Gary Hyman, director of communication with Rolls-Royce Energy Business. The construction worker was cutting a section of concrete pipe when he was struck by the saw he was operating, Hyman said.
According to the Mount Vernon Police Department, the man was Roger A. Ferenbaugh, 54, of Mount Vernon.
Detective Sgt. Jeffrey Jacobs of the MDPD said the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the incident, and was on the scene Tuesday. He said an MVPD officer was on site this morning to secure property on the scene for OHSA.
“Mostly what [the MVPD] did,” said Jacobs, “is we went down there to investigate it because the squad ran down there on an accident, or what they believed was an accident, and he was DOA. But then we pretty much turned everything over to Rolls and they secured the scene, because they were contacting occupational safety and health people and they were sending an investigator up.”
As far as the MVPD is concerned, the cause of death is accidental.
“From what we could determine without investigation, there was no foul play,” Jacobs said.
John Sahayda, spokesman for OSHA, confirmed that an investigator was onsite Tuesday afternoon to start the investigation, but could offer no further details.
“At this point we have sent someone up there to investigate. I have no information,” he said.
Part of OSHA’s investigation will include talking to the subcontractor and general contractor on the site.
“We would go to the site and hold an open conference with the various people involved; in this case it was a construction site. [The investigation] will probably be opening with the general contractors,” said Sahayda.
Determining the cause of the incident is the driving force behind OSHA officials’ work in Mount Vernon.
“There are a lot of things we will be looking into,” said Sahayda. “Trying to determine the cause, what kind of training the employees had in the operation of the equipment, and those types of things.”
At the end of the investigation a conference will be held to relate the decision to everyone directly involved in the investigation.
