Emergency services were called to the Hazlehead site near Barnsley at 2pm on Monday following reports that a worker had been injured.
He was taken by air ambulance to Northern General Hospital in Sheffield with life-threatening injuries, where South Yorkshire Police confirmed he died yesterday (July 1).
South Yorkshire Police has now launched an investigation in conjunction with the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) to determine the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Jamie Plevin, managing director of Plevin, said: “We are very sorry to report the death of an employee who was working at our Hazlehead site. We extend our sincere condolences to his family and friends, and are offering all available support at this difficult time.
“The health and safety of our employees is of the utmost importance, and we are co-operating fully with the relevant authorities to investigate the circumstances around this incident. We will provide further information as it becomes available.”
Hazlehead
The company has recently been in the news because of two fires at its 150,000 tonnes per year capacity Hazlehead site. In June, fire crews were called to tackle a large wood chip fire, the second blaze in just over a month (see letsrecycle.com story).
The 50-acre site described as the UKs largest waste wood recovery centre will be capable of processing up to 80 tonnes of wood per hour.
The firm will primarily manufacture biomass at the site as part of its 25-year contract as the sole supplier of fuel for energy giant E.ONs 120 million plant in Blackburn Meadows, near Sheffield.
Plevin began receiving waste wood at the site 12 months ago, and is in the process of making final adjustments to the 5 million plant, which is due to officially open this summer.
Meanwhile, the E.ON biomass plant was successfully synchronised with the local distribution network and began generating electricity last week (see letsrecycle.com story).
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