Worker dies after incident at Decatur manufacturing plant

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the death of an employee at a Decatur manufacturing plant. Ohio-based Prestress Services Industries LLC confirmed to our partners at WPTA-TV that Brian Scott Conley died at a Fort Wayne hospital after what the company called a tragic accident.

The incident occurred on May 3, but the company said details remain under investigation. In a statement emailed to WPTA, Prestress Services President Barry Barger said Conley, 56, “will be greatly missed.”

“The health and safety of our employees is our top priority,” Barger said. “We consistently invest in our operations to ensure the best and safest operating conditions for our employees to work. We intend to conduct our own internal review of the processes and procedures to ensure we are doing all we can in the interest of safety moving forward.”

The company said it is working with OSHA as the investigation into Conley’s death continues.

Prestress Services is a structural precast company that manufactures and supplies prestressed concrete bridge beams. In addition to its Columbus, Ohio headquarters and Decatur, Indiana facility, the company has locations in Lexington, Kentucky; Melbourne, Kentucky; and Mount Vernon, Ohio.

The incident is the second worker death reported in northeast Indiana in recent days. On Monday, 20-year-old Caes David Gruesbeck was killed in what is being called an accident at an Amazon fulfillment center in Fort Wayne. The facility remained closed most of the week before reopening on Thursday.