North Bay forklift operator crushed to death by pallet of wine, authorities say

WINDSOR, Calif. -- A forklift operator at a wine storage facility in Windsor was crushed to death by a pallet of wine on Thursday afternoon, authorities said.

The Sonoma County Fire District responded to an emergency call at 12:59 p.m. in the 1000 block of Shiloh Road in Windsor at a wine storage building. Crews arrived and discovered a deceased 40-year-old man who had apparently been crushed.

According to Windsor Police Sgt. Jason Little, an investigation is still underway but it appears that the man was operating a forklift on a stack of full wine pallets, each of which weighed about 3,000 pounds. Investigators believe the forklift got wedged into the pallets and the operator got out to inspect it, but a pallet fell on top of him and he was killed.

Little said no one witnessed what happened, but that the Sonoma County Coroner Bureau's medical examiner will determine his exact cause of death and the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health will be the lead investigators going forward.

Little said that at this time, no foul play is suspected.