A longtime employee with U.S. Lime Co. – St. Clair in Marble City died Monday after he became lodged inside an industrial machine that he had been repairing.

Wilbur Alvie Farris, 61, of Marble City was working on a vacuum-rolling machine for three hours, but just after 4 p.m. Monday the machine was somehow activated and sucked Farris inside Sequoyah County Sheriff Ron Lockhart said.

The Sallisaw Fire and Rescue team was called in to help remove Farris from the machine, which was believed to grind limestone. Lockhart said the man was one of three who were working on the equipment when the machine was accidentally turned on. He said they were doing repairs and greasing the machine when it started and trapped Farris.

Sallisaw Fire Chief Anthony Armstrong said emergency workers had to dismantle the machine in order to free Farris. He said seven Sallisaw firefighters, two Marble City firefighters, and one McKey firefighter worked nearly three hours to free Farris.

“This was a very tragic incident,” Armstrong said.

Lockhart said the Sequoyah County Sheriff’s Department completed the initial report. He said the report was turned over to the Mine Safety Health Administration (MSHA) Tuesday afternoon.

“Our investigation didn’t show anything suspicious. It was an industrial accident,” Lockhart said.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration and MSHA will be investigating the cause of the accident, Lockhart said.

“The investigation will focus on whether protocol was followed or if the machine malfunctioned,” Lockhart said.

A spokesperson with MSHA said investigators will be conducting a full investigation and the final report will be made available to the public. According to the MSHA Web site, as of Monday there have been six fatality incidents reported for the metal/nonmetal mining industries.

Lockhart was on scene at the plant with Chaplin Royce Martin shortly after the incident for employees and family members. Farris has been employed for 30 years at the plant and was currently working as a maintenance manager.

Agent Funeral Home in Sallisaw took Farris to the Oklahoma Medical Examiner’s office in Tulsa for an autopsy. Agent Funeral Home is handling funeral arrangements.