ALPENA — A 52-year-old man who was an employee of Viatech Corp. in Lachine was killed while at work Tuesday afternoon at about 6:30 p.m. The name of the victim was not released.

According to a Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration memo the man and another employee were operating a tube-cutting machine and cutting metal tube rollers used for conveyors to size when one of the tubes didn’t cut all of the way through. The man adjusted the RPM to cut another tube, but there was a burr caught on the cutting blade that caused the roller to fly up and strike him in the area of the throat.

A 911 call was made and the first to arrive at the scene was Wilson Township Fire Chief Gill LaCross, who began CPR until other first responders arrived. According to Alpena Fire Chief Bill Forbush resuscitation efforts were made and paramedics were in contact with medical control until the man was declared dead at the scene.

Forbush said it was an unfortunate accident, but praised the response from those in Wilson Township.

“They arrived quickly and Gill did a great job,” he said.

Forbush said a critical incident stress management debriefing was held in Wilson Township for the responders who were at the scene and worked on the victim.

“It helps them emotionally and process the situation that they just experienced,” Forbush said. “It is done to help them cope with what they saw and did at the scene. The debriefings are always a very good thing.”