A South Carolina man who vanished two months ago was apparently ground up in a shredding machine at the recycling plant where he worked, authorities said Wednesday.
Duncan Alexander Burrell Gordon, 20, was reported missing May 5 after having last been seen working the overnight shift at Industrial Recycling & Recovery in Greer, WSPA reported. Now, minute particles found at the machine have been confirmed to be Gordon’s remains.
“I can confirm the material is consistent with human fat, microscopically minute particles of skin, and small pieces of bone,” Spartanburg County Coroner Rusty Clevenger said in a statement.
Missing worker's remains found in plastic recycling machine at South Carolina plant https://t.co/TIAlJWup0j pic.twitter.com/rGZ3WNE7yO
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The coroner’s office was first contacted on June 10, when investigators from the Spartanburg County Sheriff’s Office discovered his DNA there. The Spartanburg County Coroner’s Office said the machine was inspected at least four times after Gordon’s disappearance, including by plant officials, a cadaver dog, and Gordon’s father, Mike Gordon, who is a supervisor at the plant.
Although evidence was found during the inspections, the machine was restarted afterward and processed around 60,000 pounds of plastic in the two months since Gordon’s disappearance.
During one of the inspections, a detective found what appeared to be human remains under a conveyor belt, according to TheState.com. When the remains tested positive for human blood, authorities contacted Clevenger’s office, which confirmed their worst fears.
Another inspection turned up two ounces of human skin, bone, and fat, the coroner’s office said. Gordon was working atop the machine when he vanished. The room includes several machines and it is noisy, according to HeraldOnline.com.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is investigating to determine if any safety violations may have contributed to the tragic accident. An OSHA spokesperson told TheState.com that the review could take two months. Clevenger said his office cannot issue a death certificate without a body, but added that state law provides another remedy for families to establish death for closure and insurance purposes.
Industrial Recovery & Recycling has processed more than “1 billion pounds of plastic material for a growing list of blue-chip manufacturing companies,” according to its website.