Worker Crushed By Excavation Equipment

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Storm Cleanup Worker Crushed

Punta Gorda -- A 50-year-old Fort Myers man was crushed to death Thursday when a small excavator fell on him at a job site, police officials said.

Police identified the man as Nelisido Cabrera.

Cabrera, a self-employed contractor, was working alone on a demolition project at the Buttonwood Village mobile home park, where Hurricane Charley left a trail of damage, said police Capt. Jason Ciaschini.

A park manager heard a machine running idle about 3:30 p.m. and found Cabrera dead, pinned underneath it. It was not clear how the excavator flipped, Ciaschini said. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration has been notified.

Cabrera's death is at least the second related to hurricane cleanup work in Charlotte County. In September, a Punta Gorda man died after he fell off a roof while trying to secure a tarp.