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Rescuers working to free person stuck inside vent of grain bin
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NEW ROADS – A man trapped inside a grain silo Tuesday afternoon has been pronounced dead, the Pointe Coupee Sheriff's Office told WBRZ.
Burciaga Martinez, 47, became trapped inside a grain silo at Beaud Farms and slipped deeper into the bin as rescuers attempted to reach him.
Sources said he somehow fell into the grain elevator portion of the structure and more than an hour after arriving on the scene, rescuers were still having trouble reaching him. Rescuers arrived on the scene shortly after 4 p.m. Tuesday.
Temperatures were in the 90s outside. Inside, dust from grain can be dangerous.
Bins are designed with gravity roof ventilators and Martinez apparently became wedged in the contraption before sliding further into it.
Martinez was a migrant worker from Mexico. He worked at Beaud Farms for several years with his son and brother-in-law, Sheriff Bud Torres said. The owners told the sheriff they considered the man part of their family.
The incident remains under investigation.
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