Trucker backs over, kills fellow employee at central Minnesota grain cooperative

A truck driver backed over and killed a fellow employee at a grain cooperative in central Minnesota, authorities said Tuesday.

The incident occurred about 2:40 p.m. Monday at Sunrise Ag in Buckman, the Morrison County Sheriff's Office said.

The man who was hit by the grain truck, 37-year-old Nathan Rothstein, of Pierz, Minn., was pronounced dead at the scene.

The truck driver was identified as Chad Pietrzak, 38, of Hillman, Minn.

Staff from the Minnesota office of the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) is investigating Rothstein's death.

Minnesota OSHA investigated this facility in February 2010, with numerous citations issued, said agency spokesman James Honerman. A follow-up conducted in September 2011 resulted in another four citations, Honerman said.

OSHA investigatory records show the violations were in a variety of areas such as eye and hand protection, the handling of grain, and a lack of training on how to safely operate industrial trucks. The two investigations led to fines totaling more than $12,000.

Monday's incident falls under what OSHA calls "contact with object/equipment." The agency investigated 42 fatalities in Minnesota in this category from Oct. 1, 2015, through Sept. 30, 2020, according to OSHA data.