Photo by: Bloomberg
The Gauteng labour department is probing the death of a worker at Rheinmetall Denel Munition in Boksburg, on the East Rand, it said on Thursday.
The worker was crushed to death when a machine he was inspecting for water leakages on Tuesday switched on, spokesperson Mishack Magakwe said in a statement.
"According to the preliminary investigations, the supervisor at [the] production line was called by one of the CNC [computer numerically controlled] operators to inform him about water leakages at his machine.
"The supervisor stopped the machine and went inside the machine to check where the water was coming from," he said.
While inside it, it switched on, crushing the man.
Labour inspectors subsequently issued a prohibition notice halting all work at the site. Safety guard rails were erected.
"The inspectors are investigating the cause of the fatality and as to whether the employer was complying with the occupational health and safety procedures during the time of the accident," Magakwe said.