Employee killed in work accident at Habitat for Humanity ReStore

NEW HANOVER COUNTY, N.C. (WECT/Gray News) – A store employee was killed after getting trapped by a forklift at a Habitat for Humanity ReStore center in southeastern North Carolina.

According to a spokesperson with the New Hanover County Sheriff’s Office, deputies responded to reports of a person trapped between the forklift and a counter Friday just before 3 p.m.

The sheriff’s office said the employee was taken to the hospital where the N.C. Department of Labor said they died the next day from their injuries.

“The N.C. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) Division has been informed of the incident and opened an inspection,” a spokesperson for NCDOL told WECT.

“Cape Fear Habitat for Humanity is deeply saddened by the loss of a ReStore employee who died,” Cape Fear Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Lauren McKenzie said in a statement.

McKenzie went on to say the organization is investigating and will take appropriate measures to prevent similar accidents in the future.

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