KERSEY, Pa. (EYT) – The Elk County Coroner identified the worker who was missing following a collapse at a Kersey landfill Wednesday afternoon.
According to a published article on wjactv.com, Elk County Coroner Michelle Muccio identified the employee of Advanced Disposal as 49-year-old William L. Pierce, of DuBois.
Pierce worked for Advanced Disposal, Inc., for 16 1/2 years; the company owned and operated Greentree Landfill, located on Toby Road near Kersey.
During a news conference at the site, Muccio said that Pierce’s body was recovered Friday afternoon; he was pronounced dead at the scene at 1:25 p.m. She indicated the cause of death was most likely blunt force trauma to the head, wjactv.com states.
The official cause of death will be determined following an autopsy which will be performed on Saturday.
According to state police, Pierce’s body was discovered inside a compacting machine 40 feet under the trash around 1:20 p.m. on Friday.
Four other workers involved in the the landfill collapse escaped injuries.
Details of the accident
Around 2:30 p.m. on February 8, Ridgway-based State Police received a call for help from the Greentree Landfill, owned and operated by Advanced Disposal, Inc., located on Toby Road near Kersey.
According to State Police, a large portion of the landfill had collapsed, burying multiple workers and pieces of heavy machinery.
Upon Pennsylvania State Police arrival at the scene, all workers except one known male employee had been accounted for.
The missing worker had been operating a compacting machine on the landfill property at the time of the collapse.
Assisting Advanced Disposal at the scene were individuals from local fire departments and ambulance services; the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency; Elk County Emergency Management Agency; Pennsylvania Urban Search and Rescue; Elkland Search and Rescue; the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection; the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission; the Salvation Army; and several local businesses.
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