Pedro Arriola said he was buried in a heap of trash about 10 ft. deep but managed to get out of it through sheer will.
“Thank God, I got out,” Arriola, a father of six, told the Variety in an interview yesterday.
He said the incident raises safety concerns at the transfer station where trash is sorted out before being moved to the landfill station in Marpi.
“I was operating the Bobcat to push the trash into the bin when it happened. I couldn’t hold it. It was all wet and slippery,” he said.
The Bobcat fell into the trash container sideways with him inside.
Arriola said he cried for help but no one was near him at the time of the incident.
He hopes the incident will prompt officials at the Department of Public Works, which has control over the transfer station, to look into safety issues.
He said the Bobcat can manage the slippery floor if its tires are not worn out.
Bernard Cruz, who is among the approximately 14 workers at the transfer station, said they haven’t had any safety training for a long time.
He said they don’t even have protective masks while sorting the trash.
In the past, he said they were given foam masks that broke easily.
“Safety gear — we don’t have it. Look around you and see how it’s done,” Cruz told this reporter.
“There’s no training about our safety,” he added.
Other workers at the station were sorting scrap metals with their bare hands.
They, too, had no protective gear.
DPW could not be immediately reached for comments.
