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Last Update: 6:14 AM

Conveyor crushes employee

An asphalt company worker was seriously injured Thursday when his head and chest were crushed in a conveyor belt, Anchorage police and firefighters said.

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Joseph Metzler, 28, remained in critical condition Thursday evening after the accident at Quality Asphalt Paving just after 4 p.m., police Lt. Paul Honeman said.

There did not appear to be any witnesses to the industrial accident that took place amid the mountains of gravel at the work site off C Street and Raspberry Road, and police were still trying to determine what happened, he said.

Metzler had gotten caught between the belt and its drum when some of his co-workers discovered him, Honeman said. His torso had been crushed, apparently collapsing his lungs, he said.

When police conclude their investigation, they will forward the report to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration for review, he said.

Quality Asphalt Paving officials did not respond to requests seeking comment Thursday.

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