SINGAPORE – A Bangladeshi worker died on Wednesday after a tree trunk that was being hoisted to be loaded into a truck became dislodged, hitting him and causing the man to fall and hit his head against the pavement.

The 28-year-old man’s death takes the total number of workplace fatalities recorded in 2022 to 43 – the highest number since 2017, when there were 42 workplace deaths.

In comparison, there were 37 work-related deaths in 2021, 30 in 2020, and 39 in 2019.

The Ministry of Manpower (MOM) said on Thursday that the latest fatal accident took place in Toa Payoh East Road, near 1003 Toa Payoh Industrial Park, at about 3.30pm on Wednesday.

The Bangladeshi worker employed by Penta Landscape was involved in the loading of tree trunks after tree pruning works were conducted there.

The lifting operations were carried out using a lorry crane, and as one of the tree trunks was being hoisted, it slipped from the lifting sling and hit the worker, MOM said.

The man was taken to Tan Tock Seng Hospital, where he died from his injuries.

MOM is investigating the accident and has ordered Penta Landscape to stop all tree pruning and lifting activities.

The ministry said that as a general safety measure, all loads must be properly rigged and secured by a competent rigger before lifting operations are conducted by mobile cranes.

The latest worker death comes after MOM had earlier put in place tougher sanctions to curb a recent rise in workplace deaths.

Composition fines for offenses observed during safety inspections were doubled in June, and companies have been made to engage external auditors to review their management systems if they have been issued stop-work orders or have had workers who suffered major injuries while on the job.

Under a six-month heightened safety period from Sept 1, 2022 to Feb 28, 2023, that was also instituted by MOM, companies will be barred from hiring new foreign workers for up to three months if severe lapses are found following a serious or fatal workplace accident.

Senior Minister of State for Manpower Zaqy Mohamad previously said that the heightened safety period had shown promising results, with the average number of workplace deaths each month in 2022 having dipped from about 4½ to two since Sept 1.

The owner of a Leicester landscaping company was killed after he was trapped under a small construction vehicle Friday in a garage that housed the business, officials said.

The victim was identified as Robert Stuart Jr., 51, in a statement released by the Worcester district attorney’s office Saturday. His death appears to be a tragic accident, according to Leicester Police Chief Kenneth Antanavica.

Leicester police, fire, and EMS went to 66 King St. for a report of a man trapped under a piece of equipment at about 11:49 am Friday, the statement said.

Stuart was found trapped under a skid steer loader, which is often used for digging. The machinery was stabilized before he was removed, but first responders discovered he had succumbed to his injuries, the district attorney’s office said.

Stuart had been working on a piece of equipment in his garage that houses Evergreen Lawn Maintenance & Landscape Corp., the district attorney’s office said. Stuart owned the business, according to state records.

The garage was on a commercial part of the property and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration was also called to the scene, the statement said.

“All of the town of Leicester first responders offered their thoughts and prayers to the victim’s family and friends,” the statement said.

On the company’s website, Stuart wrote that he has owned and operated the company for over 25 years.

“I am driven and dedicated to my work and have a strong desire to continue to learn and grow with each new endeavor,” he wrote.

The company has worked on numerous commercial and residential projects, including some with the Worcester Housing Authority and the Worcester Parks Department, according to the website.

The incident remains under investigation.

Breanne Kovatch can be reached at breanne.kovatch@globe.com. Follow her on Twitter at @breannekovatch.

Police are investigating after a man was killed in a two-vehicle crash at a Long Island intersection.

The crash happened in Greenvale at about 9 am on Monday, Aug. 29, the Nassau County Police Department reported.

A westbound Honda motorcycle and an eastbound landscaping truck were involved in a crash on Northern Boulevard at Addison Lane, NCPD

Police said the motorcyclist, identified as a man in his 30s, was taken to a hospital and pronounced dead at 10:08 am

Authorities have not yet released his name.

The driver of the landscaping truck remained and the scene, NCPD reported.

Police said no criminality is suspected at this time.

Check back to Daily Voice for updates.

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VOLUSIA COUNTY, Fla. – A man who was struck by lightning while working as a landscaper in New Smyrna Beach has died, according to his family.

Julio Cesar Lopez, 27, died on Saturday, family confirmed to News 6.

Lopez was hit by lightning on July 19 as he was doing some landscaping for the Tymber Trace neighborhood association.

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A witness said a person attempted CPR on the man until first responders could arrive.

The family told News 6 on Thursday that Lopez was only given a 10% chance of survival from his injuries.

Lopez moved to Florida from Texas in February to help the family lawn care business but his parents still live in Mexico, according to his cousin.

The family said Lopez’s parents tried to fly to Florida but their passports were expired so they applied for a temporary permit on Thursday, but the permits were not granted.

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