A postal worker has died after getting stuck in a mail handling machine - and his body was only discovered after his devastated fiancée turned up at his workplace.
The employee in his 30s was found dead on Saturday after being trapped for several hours inside a large mail handling machine at the United States Postal Service Detroit Network Distribution Center in Allen Park, Michigan.
Police believe the death was accidental, though the exact circumstances of how the worker became stuck remain under investigation.
The man's body was discovered by firefighters who responded after the worker failed to return home from his shift.
Investigators believe he had been deceased for approximately six to eight hours before being located, lodged inside the machine at the facility.
His fiancée initially alerted authorities to his absence and waited outside the facility for hours before receiving assistance.
The identity of the worker has not yet been publicly released. The United States Postal Service issued a statement expressing condolences:
'The United States Postal Service is deeply saddened by the loss of our employee at the Detroit Network Distribution Center (NDC) in Allen Park, MI. Our thoughts and prayers are with his family. The NDC is fully operational at this time.'
Inquiries are underway to determine whether safety protocols were followed and if any mechanical or procedural failures contributed to the incident.
Authorities have not yet released an official statement regarding the status of the investigation by Monday.
The incident has raised questions about workplace safety protocols in high-risk environments and prompted calls for a thorough review of equipment and emergency response procedures at the facility.
Daily Mail reached out to Allen Park Police, who have turned the investigation over to the United States Postal Inspection Service.
The death comes just days after another worker was killed in Michigan.
A 41-year-old worker from the Croswell area was killed last week after being struck by a payloader at the Michigan Sugar Piling Grounds in Croswell.
The Croswell Police Department was called to the site around 6 p.m. and found the man with life-threatening injuries; he was later pronounced dead at a local hospital.
The incident is currently under investigation by the Croswell Police Department in cooperation with the Michigan Sugar Safety Department.
Michigan Sugar Company released a statement expressing condolences and confirming that grief counselors were made available for employees.