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 2007-02-05 Investigation shows woman pinned between pallets of lettuce

DES MOINES, Iowa - An Oklahoma woman whose body was found in a truck delivering lettuce to a grocery store warehouse in Iowa was accidentally pushed into the trailer by a forklift after she walked into a loading zone at a Yuma packing plant, Yuma police said.

The body of Sheila Kay Ross, 47, of McLoud, Okla., was found Tuesday morning in the back of a semitrailer delivering lettuce to the Hy-Vee warehouse in Chariton, southeast of Des Moines.

An autopsy showed she died of compressional asphyxiation, and her death was ruled an accident. Ross' body was found by a dock worker who was unloading the truck at the Hy-Vee warehouse.
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The Arizona Division of Occupational Safety and Health will investigate the circumstances and determine if any workplace safety violations occurred.

Officer Clint Norred, a spokesman with the Yuma Police Department, said the investigation showed that Ross walked into a loading zone where she was accidentally pushed into the trailer by a forklift with a load of lettuce, pinning her inside. The forklift driver was cleared of any criminal act, Norred said in a news release.

Ross and her husband, who owned their own truck, arrived at the Dole Foods plant in Yuma, Ariz., just after 9 p.m. Saturday. Ross left the truck to get paperwork but never returned, police said.

Police said Ross' husband reported her missing about 11:55 p.m. When an officer arrived, several semitrailers at the Dole plant were unloaded. Officers also searched the plant and the surrounding area, finding no sign of Ross, police said.

Officers obtained a list of semis that were at Dole at the time and were able to contact several drivers who had been at the plant but had left before police arrived.

The drivers were told to check their loads as soon as possible. Many drivers returned the officers' phone calls saying they did not find Ross in their trucks.

The driver of the truck that Ross was found in told Iowa authorities that he had checked his trailer but did not see any sign of Ross, police said.

Police said he was unable to see her because she was pinned between two pallets in the middle of his trailer. The truck that she was found in left the Dole plant at 10:50 p.m. Saturday, police said.

Police said the truck was owned by an R&J Trucking, but no further information on the company was released
     
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