Worker dies after lumber pile tips over and traps him against a forklift in Costa Mesa

An employee died at Ganahl Lumber in Costa Mesa after a big pile of wood fell and trapped him against a forklift, fire officials said Saturday.

The Orange County coroner’s office identified him as Ricardo Castorena, 28, of Santa Ana.

Crews responded to a call at the store on Bristol Street around 9:30 p.m. Friday, according to the Costa Mesa Fire & Rescue Department.

They found the victim pinned against a forklift by “several thousand pounds” of lumber, fire Capt. Joe Noceti said. The pile appeared to have shifted off its base and tipped over, Noceti said.

Castorena was pronounced dead minutes after paramedics arrived, officials said.

Costa Mesa’s urban search and rescue team worked late into the night to remove the pile from the victim so the coroner’s office could conduct an investigation, according to the Fire & Rescue Department.

Neither the lumber company nor the California Occupational Safety and Health Administration immediately responded to a request for comment.

City News Service contributed to this report.

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