A mother in Brazil is mourning the death of her son after he was pulled into an industrial ice crusher at a sausage factory where he was covering another worker’s early shift.
Diego Fernando Gonzaga, 39, had taken the 5:30 a.m. Slot Monday at HG Foods in Santa Luzia when he fell into the machine and became trapped, according to local outlet g1.globo.com. Rescuers rushed to the meat production center and attempted to extract him using hydraulic equipment and cutting tools to dismantle portions of the equipment, but his legs remained stuck. Gonzaga went into cardiac arrest while still inside the machine and died at the scene, the UK reports said.
The longtime food industry worker was still conscious as colleagues waited alongside him for fire officials to arrive. He reportedly spoke to coworkers during the rescue attempt.
Gonzaga’s mother, Maria de Fatima, said she had already endured multiple family losses in recent months before her son’s death. She lost her mother, an aunt, an uncle and a cousin in the preceding period, she said.
“It is the children who should bury their parents, not parents burying their children,” de Fatima said.
She described the shock of learning her son had not returned from work. “You receive the news that your child leaves home alive and healthy to go to work, and then you find out he is gone. It is very sad.”
“My heart is shattered,” she added.
Gonzaga’s cousin, Mariana Alberto, told g1.globo.com that he was known throughout the family for his joyful demeanor. “He was very cheerful and was always singing and dancing. He wanted to live—to live life to the fullest and be happy,” Alberto said.
The father of a 19-year-old daughter had built a career in food production before the fatal incident. The specific circumstances of how he fell into the ice-crushing equipment remained unclear Wednesday, and representatives from HG Foods did not respond to a request for comment from local outlet bhaz.com.br.
De Fatima said the family faces a long road of grief. “He will be greatly missed. We will never truly get over it. It is a huge loss.”
Brazilian workplace safety authorities have not yet issued a public statement on whether an investigation into the death at the Santa Luzia facility has been opened.