By Richard L. Gaw
Staff Writer

A worker was killed during a May 1 machinery accident at the Hy-Tech Mushroom Compost facility at 155 Valley Road in West Grove.

At 6:30 p.m., area fire and emergency responders were dispatched to the scene after being informed that a worker had become trapped in industrial machinery. The worker sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene and removed from the machinery just after 9 a.m. on May 2.

The identity of the deceased has not been released. The circumstances related to how the accident occurred, as well as an investigation about the machinery being used and the sequence of events that led to the worker’s death are being investigated. The details of the incident — including the type of machinery involved and the sequence of events that led to the worker becoming trapped — are under active investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the Pennsylvania State Police.

Officials are expected to release additional information about the incident in the coming days.

The company posted the following statement: “We are deeply saddened by the loss of one of our team members and extend our heartfelt sympathies to the family and friends impacted by this tragedy. We are working closely with investigator to understand how this happened and to ensure the continued safety of our employees.”

The fatality that occurred at the farm was the second accidental death to happen at a Chester County mushroom facility in the last year. On April 18, 2024, a 58-year-old worker at Kaolin Mushrooms was cleaning a machine at the location when he fell from a catwalk and died from head trauma.  

Over the past two decades, the mushroom industry has gone to great lengths to establish safe workplaces. Back in 2007, the Avondale-based American Mushroom Institute (AMI) and OSHA first entered into an Alliance to develop and provide training and education programs for the mushroom growing industry to prevent falls and amputations, and to reduce or eliminate chemical, electrical and physical hazards. In 2017, the Alliance was renewed, with an emphasis on implementing effective safety and health programs and providing expertise in communicating safety and health information to employers and employees. 

In addition, the AMI’s website contains safety toolkits, apps and Worker Protection Standard (WPS) training videos that have been developed by the Pennsylvania Office of Rural Health - Rural Health Farm Worker Protection Safety Program with funding from the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.

To contact Staff Writer Richard L. Gaw, email [email protected].