ILOILO CITY – An 18-year-old worker was killed after half of his body was stuck inside an industrial meat grinder in this city yesterday.
Authorities identified the victim as Jomar Junco of Laua-an, Antique, a neophyte worker in a chorizo factory in Mansaya-Lapuz, La Paz, here.
Residents were stunned seeing photos of Junco’s lower torso with his legs hanging in mid-air in the machine.
Numerous news reports claimed that half of his body was eaten by the industrial meat grinder, which drove residents to compare the accident into a horror movie.
However, the shocking details were not entirely accurate. When workers of the funeral home removed his body from the industrial meat processor, it was intact.
Police Major Mark Evan Salvo, chief of the La Paz police station, said that Junco initially got his right hand stuck inside the machine and was not able to pull it out and the victim was subsequently dragged by the mixer part of the machine.
“He was not grinded. He was just stuck,” Salvo said, clarifying public perception of the incident.
Investigators also found out that Junco was new to the job and did not know how to operate the machine. When one of his co-workers stepped out of the room, Junco unfortunately tried to operate the machine by himself, leading to his death. (Tara Yap)
