A man was found dead at a solar panel manufacturing plant in Cartersville, officials confirmed.
Cartersville firefighters were called to the Qcells facility, about 50 miles northwest of Atlanta, around 7:15 p.m. Monday and found the man with no pulse on top of a tank. The oxygen level at the top of the tank was about 15%, which is too low to survive, authorities said.
The man was removed from the area and pronounced dead at the scene. He was identified by the Bartow County Coroner’s Office as Marion Jose Rugama, 33, of Norcross.
Officials said he was a contractor who worked for Hyoungwon E&C America, Inc. His cause of death is pending an autopsy and toxicology screening.
“This plant is under construction and is not under operation in this area,” Cartersville fire officials confirmed. “The man was working on top of the tank, not inside.”
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation into the incident.
“On behalf of Qcells and everyone associated with the Qcells Cartersville site, we are deeply saddened that a workplace accident resulted in a fatality,” the company said in a statement to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “We are working closely with the authorities in investigating the reason behind this tragedy. Our hearts are with the affected family, coworkers and local community impacted by this accident.”
The facility was operating normally Wednesday, the spokesperson said.
According to the fire department, a nitrogen leak could be the cause of the fatal incident. No other chemicals or gases are being used in the area, authorities said.
Qcells, which is owned by the Korean conglomerate Hanwha Solutions, is a big part of the wave in green energy and clean tech companies that have flocked to Georgia in the past decade. The company opened its initial factory in Dalton in 2019 and later expanded it, then opened a new factory in Cartersville.
Together, the plants are the largest solar manufacturing operation in the Western Hemisphere, the company has said.
— Please return to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution for updates.
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