A farm worker was crushed to death while attaching machinery to a tractor in Cornwall, an inquest has heard. Aleksej Kleinov, 34, died on April 11, 2024, on a field owned by Southern England Farms Ltd near Trispen, Truro.
Mr Kleinov, an experienced tractor driver who had worked for the company since 2014, was helping a less experienced colleague lift a mini packer, also known as a box rig, onto a tractor. The inquest at Truro heard that as he tried to hitch the machinery, its arms lifted and struck him. He managed to free himself and walked a few steps before collapsing.
Colleagues administered CPR for over an hour until paramedics arrived, but Mr Kleinov could not be revived due to the severity of his injuries. A Home Office pathologist gave the cause of death as head and neck injuries. A toxicology test found no alcohol or drugs in his system.
The Health and Safety Executive has launched an investigation. Witness Shakhzoda Bakibayeva told the inquest she saw Mr Kleinov trying to attach the mini packer from inside the trailer. 'He was bent forward. He turned around and walked towards me and held his hand out when he came down from the trailer. He was outside the trailer when he collapsed. He didn't say a word. He was quite in shock,' she said.
Fellow worker Aneta Vitanova said the arms of the mini packer lifted as Mr Kleinov was bent over, hitting his head and neck. The colleague he was helping, Rugile Kuraite, said she had not been trained to use the mini packer before the incident. She raised the arms after being asked by Mr Kleinov, which caused the fatal blow.
Since the incident, the company has stopped using mini packers and introduced formal examinations for machinery use. Renaldus Blaziunas, who trained staff, said training previously was more informal. 'People now have to pass an examination. It is a more formal process,' he told the inquest.
