Authorities blame Mississippi poultry plant for death of teenage immigrant

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) named the Mar-Jac Poultry company as directly responsible for the death of a teenage immigrant who was sucked into a deboning machine at a poultry plant in Mississippi. The investigation found 14 serious violations and proposed more than $200,000 in fines for the company.

Second fatal accident in two years at the plant

The death of Duvan Pérez, originally from Guatemala, occurred after his hand was trapped in the machine and the rest of his body was sucked in, causing his death. OSHA reported that the machine should have been disconnected from its power source while Pérez proceeded to sanitize it. Pérez's death is the second fatal accident in two years that has occurred at the plant.

OSHA Regional Administrator Kurt Petermeyer noted that "Mar-Jac Poultry is aware of how dangerous the machinery they use can be when safety standards are not in place to prevent serious injury and death. The company’s inaction has directly led to this terrible tragedy, which has left so many to mourn this child’s preventable death."