OSHA is investigating an incident in which an employee of a construction company was killed when some of his co-workers threw a refrigerator off of a fourth story balcony, crushing the employee.
Rafal Chmura, 33, was part of a team employed by Wiegand Enterprises working in a building in Milwaukee.
Police say the workers called out, “All clear,” before throwing the refrigerator out of the building, but Chmura walked out of the building and was killed by the appliance.
His widow, Beata Chmura, tells a Milwaukee TV station that one of her husband’s former co-workers tells her it was a frequent practice to throw things off of balconies or out windows to save time on jobs. (Video of the TV interview is here.)
Rick Wiegand, owner of the company, denies that claim. He says his company would never condone that behavior.
Police have completed their investigation and called the incident a “tragic accident.”