‘Large door’ closes on woman later pronounced dead at steel facility, SC cops say
A “large door” hit a woman who was later pronounced dead, prompting an investigation in South Carolina, officials said.
The “workplace accident” was reported at a Charleston-area Pegasus Steel facility on Thursday, Jan. 12. The 175,000-square-foot building handles fabrication and assembly duties, according to its website.
Pegasus Steel didn’t immediately respond to McClatchy News’ requests for comment on Jan. 13.
Charleston County deputies were called at about 3 p.m. to the Pegasus Steel location on U.S. Highway 78 in Ladson, roughly 20 miles northwest of Charleston.
“A large door closed on a person, causing serious injury,” the sheriff’s office told McClatchy News in an email. “The individual was pronounced dead at the scene. There is no evidence of foul play.”
The Charleston County Coroner’s Office identified the deceased woman as 53-year-old Jessica Birkmire. The Goose Creek resident “died from head trauma,” officials said.
The S.C. Occupational Safety and Health Administration — a division of the Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation — is investigating the case. It could take more than eight weeks to look into possible safety violations that may have played a role in the incident, the agency wrote in an email to McClatchy News.
Officials didn’t say whether the woman who died was a Pegasus Steel worker.
This story was originally published January 13, 2023 at 8:16 AM with the headline "‘Large door’ closes on woman later pronounced dead at steel facility, SC cops say."
