Family sues over death of Missouri worker in wood chipper

ST. JOSEPH, Mo. (AP) — The family of a 38-year-old man who died after falling into a wood chipper at a St. Joseph sawmill is suing the manufacturer of the machine.

The St. Joseph News-Press reports that the minor children of Joshua Hill allege in the lawsuit filed last week that Williams Patent Crusher and Pulverizer Co. didn't have any built-in safety features for its XR430 Hog Wood Chipper.

Hill fell into the machine in March 2018 while working for American Walnut Co., which makes lumber products for gunstocks and furniture. As the operator, Hill was supposed to be stationed in a small shed above the machine where wood pieces were fed into an opening in the machine.

The petition says the machine lacked an automatic shut-off, an emergency stop button or rope, guards, flaps or other methods to protect operators of the wood chipper. It also alleges that no warning signs or instructions were provided with the machine.

The St. Louis-based manufacturer didn't immediately return a phone message from The Associated Press.