Firefighters Attempt to Aid California Man Caught in Wood Chipper

San Jose fire officials said that at about 11 a.m. Miguel Marquez of San Jose was standing on the tailgate of the wood chipper machine when some tree debris got stuck in the chute. As Marquez tried to kick the jammed wood through the chute, both his feet and legs were pulled into the high-powered thrasher. He bled to death of massive injuries.

``He was sucked into the shredder,'' said Capt. Allison Cabral of the San Jose Fire Department. ``By the time our crew got to him he was dead.''

Cabral said Marquez, who has family in Mexico and a father in the San Jose area, was part of a three-person crew. His co-workers were clearing branches in a tree at the time and did not see the accident.

They immediately called 911 from a cell phone, but cell phone calls to 911 are routed through the California Highway Patrol offices in Vallejo, and such calls do not automatically inform dispatchers of locations. Law enforcement officials advise residents to program the numbers of their local police and fire departments into their cell phones in case of emergencies.

``They called 911, and the fire department went out there as quickly as they could, but the young man was pronounced dead at the scene,'' said Sgt. Steve Dixon of the San Jose Police Department. ``It was very tragic, and the men on the work crew were pretty shaken up.''

Cabral said Marquez worked for a tree-trimming company called Ag Science, and the crew was working outside of Novellus Systems at First Street and Vista Montana.

A spokesman at Cal-OSHA's Fremont office said the agency would investigate.

Marquez's family could not be reached Sunday.