Missouri factory worker found dead inside industrial oven, police say
A Guatemalan national working under an alias was found dead inside an industrial oven at a cereal plant in Missouri last week, authorities say.
Nicolas Lopez Gomez, 38, who was working under the name Edward Avila, was located by officers, emergency medical services personnel and firefighters, the Perryville Police Department said.
Officers were sent to the Gilster-Mary Lee Perryville Cereal Plant for a man "stuck in an industrial oven that was shut down," police said. By the time they got to Gomez, he was already dead.
The Perry County coroner was called in shortly after to assist.
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"OSHA [Occupational Safety and Health Administration] has been contacted concerning this accident and will be conducting its investigation," Perry County Coroner Meghan Ellis said in a statement. "Our offices will work with them to determine how this occurred."
Fox News Digital reached out to both the OSHA and the Gilster-Mary Lee Corporation for comment, but neither immediately responded.
Gilster-Mary Lee Corporation operates 11 locations across three Midwestern states, its website says. The company has been in operation for 125 years, manufacturing "safe, quality food products" that are sold under private labels and by food service companies.
In Perryville, the company's cereal and mix plants are right across the street from each other on Old St. Mary's Road, Google Maps shows.