2022 MIOSHA Fatality Information

Use the information in this table to build hazard awareness and prevent risk for similar occurrences in your workplace. This table shares preliminary details about many of the fatalities reported to the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration. These descriptions reflect information provided to MIOSHA at the initial report of the incident and are not the result of the official MIOSHA investigation.

When available, MIFACE Summaries of MIOSHA Inspections will be included at the end of the description.

FATALITY NUMBER	DATE	OCCUPATION	AGE	TYPE OF INJURY	DESCRIPTION	INCIDENT LOCATION (CITY)
1.	01/11/22	Steel Laborer	29	Caught in or between	A 29-year-old steel laborer was operating an extendable boom forklift to pick up pre-insulated metal panels when he leaned through the cab and was crushed by the lift boom.	Dundee
2.	01/17/22	Loader Operator	61	Crushed by	A 61-year-old loader operator had a hydraulic line break. As he attempted to replace the hydraulic line, he loosened the wrong line and the load came down on him, crushing him against the axle.	Baraga
3.	3/1/22	Laborer	35	Struck by	A 35-year-old laborer was struck by a dozer that was backing up.	Jackson
4.	3/4/22	Truck Driver	57	Crushed by	A 57-year-old truck driver was delivering trusses to a jobsite. While the employee was unloading the trusses, the trusses fell off the truck onto him, and he passed away on the scene.	Allendale
5.	1/18/22	Corrections Officer	51	Other	A 51-year-old corrections officer felt ill and did not report to work. He tested positive for COVID-19 on December 18, 2021 and passed away on January 18, 2022.	Detroit
6.	3/28/22	Construction Foreman	61	Fall	A 61-year-old construction foreman was performing framing activities and fell from the third story of a residential construction project. He was not wearing fall protection.	Pinckney
7.	3/29/22	Tree Trimmer	61	Fall	A 61-year-old tree trimmer was aloft in a tree, using a chainsaw to trim branches, when he fell approximately 50 feet. He passed away at the scene.	Montague
8.	3/29/22	Electrician	68	Fall	A 68-year-old electrician was performing electrical activities when he fell off a ladder. He was transported to the hospital and passed away.	Pontiac
9.	1/2/22	Corrections Officer	45	Other	A 45-year-old corrections officer fell ill and did not report to work. He tested positive for COVID-19 on December 8, 2021 and was hospitalized on December 14. He passed away on January 2, 2022.	Carson City
10.	1/16/22	Head Milker	24	Struck by	A 24-year-old dairy milker was working in the yard when another employee operating a loader ran over him.	Decker
11.	1/11/22	Supervisor	56	Other	On December 22, 2021, a 56-year-old supervisor tested positive for COVID-19 and did not return to work. On January 9, 2022, the employee went to the hospital but was released the same day. She passed away on January 11, 2022 due to COVID-19.	Troy
12.	1/22/22	Direct Service Personnel	77	Other	On December 22, 2021, a 77-year-old direct service professional tested positive for COVID-19. She was admitted to a hospital and put on a ventilator. On January 22, 2022, the employer was notified that the employee had passed away from COVID-19.	Mt. Clemens
13.	4/29/22	Laborer	68	Cave-in	On April 29, 2022, a 68-year-old laborer was placing underground drainage tiles for a pole building project. The property owner discovered the excavation had collapsed and called 911. Authorities later recovered two bodies.	Alto
14.	4/29/22	Owner	59	Cave-in	On April 29, 2022, a 59-year-old owner was placing underground drainage tiles for a pole building project. The property owner discovered the excavation had collapsed and called 911. Authorities later recovered two bodies.	Alto
15.	5/27/22	Flagman	65	Struck by	On May 27, 2022, a 65-year-old was standing adjacent to the racetrack at the pit entrance observing a race as a flagman. A race car lost control and struck the employee, crushing him into a tire barricade.	Norway
16.	6/21/22	Roofer	34	Fall (from elevation)	On June 21, 2022, a 34-year-old roofer was installing a metal roof. While climbing down, he fell off the ladder, falling approximately 10 feet and struck a metal trash bin.	Imlay City
17.	6/24/22	Maintenance	48	Crushed by	On June 24, 2022, a 48-year-old maintenance worker was taking down a section of air ducts to perform cleaning tasks. A powered industrial truck was used to help support and lower the duct system. As the worker was removing bolts, the weight of the ducts resting on the fork extensions caused the powered industrial truck to tip over, crushing the victim.	Pigeon
18.	6/24/22	General Laborer	49	Fall (from elevation)	On June 24, 2022, a 49-year-old laborer was removing trash through a second story window into a wood box on the forks of a rough terrain fork truck. The worker exited the window into the box. Both the box and the employee fell off the forks approximately 16 feet to the ground.	South Haven
19.	6/30/22	Maintenance Technician	57	Struck by	On June 30, 2022, a 57-year-old maintenance technician was installing components for a new conveyor system with two other employees. The conveyor components were temporarily staged and set onto 4x4 blocks. A forklift was used to lift the conveyor components off the blocks, when the conveyor component toppled and landed on the victim.	Trenton
20.	7/7/22	Mechanic	58	Caught in or between	On July 7, 2022, a 58-year-old mechanic was performing maintenance on a conveyor system when it began moving and the employee was struck by and became caught in the system.	Fremont
21.	7/14/22	General Laborer	44	Crushed by	On July 14, 2022, a 44-year-old general laborer was attempting to repair a tire on a wood chipper. The employee removed the damaged tire and went underneath the woodchipper to place a cement block when the jack shifted and the woodchipper fell, crushing him.	Troy
22.	7/15/22	Truck Driver	53	Struck by	On July 15, 2022, a 53-year-old truck driver walked behind a tandem dump truck to clear the bumper of concrete debris, when they were struck by a bulldozer backing up.	Chesterfield
23.	7/20/22	Lead Worker	57	Struck by	On July 20, 2022, a 57-year-old lead worker was attempting to clear a tree that was blocking both lanes of a roadway, when he was struck by a vehicle.	Bridgman
24.	3/30/22	Mental Health Technician	30	Homicide	On March 30, 2022, a 30-year-old mental health technician was overseeing patients outside of the clinic when he had a confrontation with an individual near the facility. The individual fatally shot the employee.	Detroit
25.	7/27/22	Crewman	18	Struck by	On July 27, 2022, an 18-year-old crewman was driving an off-road vehicle on a public road and was struck by a motor vehicle.	Chesaning
26.	8/2/22	Painter	47	Fall (from elevation)	On August 2, 2022, a 47-year-old painter was on a ladder painting the exterior of a residential house. He fell approximately 20 feet head-first on to another painter below.	Plymouth
27.	8/16/22	Custodian	59	Struck by	On August 5, 2022, a 59-year-old custodian was standing near a double-stacked cardboard bale, conversing with a fork truck operator. As the operator drove away, they witnessed the cardboard bale — weighing approximately 2,000 to 2,500 pounds — slide off the bottom bale and onto the victim, pinning him to the ground against the fork truck. He was hospitalized and passed away on August 16.	Center Line
28.	7/21/22	Field Worker	23	Struck by	On July 19, 2022, a 23-year-old field worker was struck in the head by a 40' dead tree while waiting for his tote of blueberries to be weighed. He was hospitalized and passed away on July 21.	South Haven
29.	8/22/22	Shipping/Receiving Handler	31	Struck by	On August 22, 2022, a 31-year-old shipping/receiving handler was moving pallets in a warehouse using a Hilo. The pallets contained nylon sacks of plastic pellets weighing approximately 2,200-2,300 pounds. Coworkers later discovered the employee unresponsive on the ground, with one of the nylon sacks on top of them.	Fowlerville
30.	8/23/22	Crew Leader/Roofer	46	Shock	On August 23, 2022, a 46-year-old roofer and crew leader climbed a secured ladder while carrying a 10-foot piece of metal trim. The metal trim came into contact with a live electrical line, causing him to fall from the ladder approximately 18 feet to the ground.	Richmond
31.	9/7/22	Seasonal Worker	30	Fall (from elevation)	On September 7, 2022, a 30-year-old seasonal worker was riding with approximately five other employees on the back of a trailer that was being towed by a tractor. The employees were traveling between farming fields. The victim fell back off the trailer on to the roadway.	Hart32
32.	9/12/22	Framer	39	Fall (from elevation)	On September 12, 2022, a 39-year-old framer was working on fascia boards from a roof with other employees. A piece of wood being used for a slide guard/toe board broke, causing two employees to fall to the ground. One employee went to the hospital, the other passed away due to injuries sustained.	Saugatuck
33.	8/17/22	Owner	62	Fall (from elevation)	On August 16, 2022, a 62-year-old owner was performing work while standing on a portable ladder. The victim fell to the concrete surface below. He was transported to the nearby hospital and passed away on August 17, 2022.	Mt. Pleasant
34.	10/5/22	Carpenter	57	Fall (from elevation)	On October 5, 2022, a 57-year-old carpenter fell off a scaffold approximately 20-feet to the ground. He was transported to the hospital and passed away due to injuries sustained.	Oakland Township
35.	10/7/22	Truck Driver	77	Crushed in or between	On October 7, 2022, a 77-year-old truck driver was working on a broken lift gate with another employee. The victim was crushed by the lift gate.	Troy
36.	10/24/22	Hilo Driver	25	Struck by	On October 24, 2022, a 25-year-old Hilo operator was operating a powered industrial truck. The employee took a turn too quickly and was ejected. The powered industrial truck tipped over and fell onto the victim.	Sterling Heights
37.	10/26/22	Truck Driver	51	Struck by	On October 26, 2022, a 51-year-old truck driver delivering material was folding load securement straps next to the trailer. An employee at the delivery location was using a forklift to unload the material and bumped a section of the stacked material off the trailer onto the victim.	Grandville
38.	10/27/22	Maintenance Tech	30	Caught in or between	On October 27, 2022, a 30-year-old maintenance technician was performing maintenance on a tractor to prepare for the winter season. While exiting the front of the tractor, the victim became pinned between the cab and the bucket support arm. He was transported to the hospital and passed away due to injuries sustained.	Tawas City
39.	10/28/22	Maintenance	44	Struck by	On October 28, 2022, a 50-year-old maintenance worker was crushed between the loading dock and a box truck. The box truck was being driven by an employee from another employer.	Wyoming
40.	11/13/2022	Farm Hand	34	Caught in or between	On November 13, 2022, a 34-year-old farm hand was found dead caught inside a corn combine. He had gone to harvest corn the evening before and was unaccounted for on the morning of the 13th.	Grand Ledge

There were 54 MIOSHA-related deaths in 2021. 2009 saw the lowest number with 24.

If you need help or assistance in ensuring your workplace is safe, MIOSHA is here with resources to help. The Consultation Education and Training (CET) Division provides workplace safety and health training and consultations to employers and employees throughout Michigan free of charge. Contact CET today at 800-866-4674 or submit a request online.

Every life is precious. Our mutual goal must be that every employee goes home at the end of every shift unharmed.

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2022 MIOSHA Fatality Information

FATALITY NUMBER

DATE

OCCUPATION

AGE

TYPE OF INJURY

DESCRIPTION

INCIDENT LOCATION (CITY)