It used to be that when someone needed something they would hope in their car and drive to the nearest store carrying the desired item. With the ease of online shopping however, many people turn to their computers. Amazon is often the first stop and with a couple clicks of the mouse, the necessary shopping may be complete and almost like magic, the item will arrive on the doorstep a few days later.

While the process may seem easy to the consumer, there is of course a lot going on behind the scenes. In many instances the item ordered will be pulled from an Amazon warehouse, staffed by workers. Depending on the job a warehouse worker has, he or she may find that they are placed in great danger.

Sadly a woman working at a Pennsylvania Amazon Fulfillment Center, whose job was dangerous, recently led to her death. The 52-year-old died after the pallet truck she was driving crashed into shelves at the warehouse. According to the coroner, she suffered multiple traumatic injuries in the workplace accident.

In most cases, when a worker in the state of Pennsylvania is hurt while working, he or she can seek workers’ compensation benefits while recovering. When a worker dies, depending on the circumstances surrounding the fatal workplace accident, it is possible that the loved ones of the worker may decide to seek damages via a wrongful death lawsuit. To be viable, negligence on the part of the employer would be necessary.

As the circumstances surrounding the incident are not clear, it is unknown whether this course of action will be taken.

Source: Penn Live, “OSHA investigates Amazon warehouse death in Carlisle,” Steve Marroni, June 4, 2014