The body of a worker killed when a rock ledge collapsed on his excavator in Sterling, Massachusetts, Thursday has been recovered, officials said Friday, identifying him.
The worker was Brian Curtis Derby, a 67-year-old from Townsend, according to the Worcester County District Attorney's Office. Derby's body was recovered by a technical rescue team after work through the night.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner took the worker's body from the quarry on Stone Crest Way early Friday, according to prosecutors. They didn't share more information about a cause of death.
Onyx Corporation, which owns and operates the quarry where the rockslide took place, described Derby in a statement as "a dedicated 11-year employee" who "was respected and loved by many."
The company will offer support to Derby's family and friends and was providing professional counseling for all its staff "while we mourn this tragic loss."
The rockslide happened just before 8 a.m., the Worcester District Attorney's Office said previously. Rescue workers were called to the site and used camera equipment to assess the scene, determining that there were no signs of life. The worker was pronounced dead at 8:39 a.m.
The town soon ordered that work at the site cease.
The U.S. Department of Labor Mine Safety and Health Administration inspected the site to determine the safety of moving forward with retrieval efforts. A representative for the agency said there was no estimated time their investigation of the accident would be completed.
Onyx has said that it would be closing all its locations through the weekend.
"Our hearts go out to the family of our longtime employee and friend who was killed in a tragic accident this morning at our Sterling Sand and Gravel pit. He was operating an excavator within the safety zone of a 100-foot ledge face when the wall collapsed," the company said in a statement.
