California woman dies after clothing gets stuck in raisin-processing machine

Cal Fire and the Fresno County Sheriff's Office responded at 11 a.m. Friday to a report of a traumatic injury at the Del Ray Packing Plant in the 3000 block of Indianola Avenue in Sanger, 15 miles east of Fresno. less Cal Fire and the Fresno County Sheriff's Office responded at 11 a.m. Friday to a report of a traumatic injury at the Del Ray Packing Plant in the 3000 block of Indianola Avenue in Sanger, 15 miles east of ... more Photo: Google Maps Photo: Google Maps Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close California woman dies after clothing gets stuck in raisin-processing machine 1 / 1 Back to Gallery

A California woman died after her clothing reportedly got caught in a raisin-processing machine in the Central Valley, officials say.

The incident was reported to emergency officials at 11 a.m., and Cal Fire and the Fresno County Sheriff's Office responded to the call from the Del Ray Packing Plant in the 3000 block of Indianola Avenue in Sanger, 15 miles east of Fresno.

The woman was working on what's known as a "stem grading line" when her "clothing got caught on a shaft to a cylinder that breaks up raisin bunches," causing her to strike her head," Frank Polizzi, a spokesman with the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health Administration (Cal/OSHA), said in a statement.

When officials arrived on the scene, the employee was dead, said Seth Brown, a public information officer for Cal Fire and Fresno County Fire.

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KPEE-TV reported that the victim was clearing debris from the machine when the incident occurred.

The victim has yet to be identified, but Cal/OSHA said she was working for a farm labor contractor named Blessed Harvest.

Cal/OSHA is investigating the death. "Cal/OSHA will be looking into the cause of the incident and if there were any violations of workplace safety regulations, such as failure to adequately train employees or maintain equipment," Polizzi said.

Amy Graff is a digital editor with SFGATE. Email her: agraff@sfgate.com.