COVID-19 Claims Life of Worker at Cargill Plant in Virginia

A worker at Cargill meat processing plant in Dayton, VA died after becoming infected with COVID-19, the company told several local news organizations. 

The victim was identified by the Harrisonburg Daily News-Record as 69-year-old Lauro Carlos Bautista Lopez, who worked at the Cargill plant in Dayton for about three decades. He reportedly died two days after testing positive for the novel coronavirus.

“Our sympathy is with the family who is mourning the loss of a loved one. We are working hard hand in hand with the local health departments to take every possible precaution to keep our employees safe while we work to nourish the world,” the company said in a press release quoted by WHSV. “We care about our teammates – their safety remains our focus.”

The company is putting a number of safety measures into action in the facility to protect workers from exposure to the coronavirus, according to the television news station’s coverage, including mandatory quarantine periods for infected workers or those who may have been exposed to the virus, providing face masks, temperature checks, and increasing space between workers in the site. 

Earlier this month, 38 COVID-19 cases were uncovered among workers at the Cargill Meat Solutions Plant in High River, AB. The company also temporarily suspended work at its meat processing plant in Hazelton, PAafter an unknown number of workers tested positive for coronavirus. 

For more news headlines, articles, and equipment reviews, visit our Equipment Zones

More Powder & Bulk Solids articles:

84% of US Impacted by Shortages of High-Demand CPG

OSHA Issues Guidance to Counter N95 Respirator Shortages

15 Hospitalized After Ammonia Leak at Food Plant in RI