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Workplace accident: A 39-year-old farm worked died after being crushed by a tractor in Salinas. (Photo: KSBW)

A 39-year-old farm worker died in a workplace accident Wednesday when he was crushed between a tractor and a large metal harvester in a Salinas lettuce field. •   A farm worker was picking lettuce when he was struck by a tractor. •   The tractor pinned the worker between the vehicle and a large harvesting machine.  •   The worker was crushed to death. He was pronounced dead at the scene. The fatal accident occurred at about 10:30 a.m., according to a KSBW News report. Sheriff’s department coroner Dan Robison said Eliseo Garcia Gutierrez — who lived and worked in either Salinas or Arizona, depending on the crop season — was working in a lettuce field located at 1777 Old Stage Road. Gutierrez was picking lettuce and placing it on a conveyor belt that runs across a large metal crop harvester when a tractor, driven by another farm worker, struck him. He was crushed between the tractor and the harvester. The details of the accident were not clear, but California Highway Patrol officer Robert Lehman said a large crew was working at the time and several of them witnessed the fatal accident. Both the CHP and the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health (Cal/OSHA) are investigating the accident. Lehman said he did not know who owned the agricultural field. Agricultural Injury Statistics Agriculture is one of the most hazardous industries in the country, according to the Centers for Disease Control.Every day, almost 250 agricultural workers lose time from work due to in-the-job injuries. Five percent of those injuries result in permanent impairment. In 2009,  440 farm workers died from work-related injuries. Of those fatalities, more than 25 percent were under age 20. The most common farming accident fatalities are due to tractor rollovers, which account for about 90 deaths every year. The most common types of non-fatal injuries are sprains, strains, and torn ligaments (22 percent), fractures (15 percent), and cuts (13 percent).

Salinas Farming Accident Lawyers

The trial attorneys at Blackman Legal Group, a California-based law firm founded by renowned trial attorneyClifford Blackman, have successfully represented workplace accident victims and their families for 35 years. The nationwide toll-free number to call for a free consultation is 1-866-692-8126.