An Amarillo, Texas, man died Friday night while working at a Tyson Foods plant.
The accident happened just before 9 p.m. at a Tyson beef plant in the material-handling unit, where boxes of beef are prepared for shipments, Tyson spokesman Gary Mickelson said in an email Tuesday.
"We're deeply saddened by the loss of one of our Amarillo team members and our hearts go out to his family," he said.
Authorities said that Warren Jay Slaton, 34, was accidentally pinned between several loaded pallets, CBS affiliate KFDA reported Tuesday. Employees were doing CPR on him when Potter County deputies arrived at the scene.
Slaton was declared dead at the scene, according to reports.
Mickelson said Tyson is working with authorities to investigate the incident. The Springdale company also notified the U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
-- Nathan Owens
Report notes impact of consumer goods
A new report shows the consumer packaged-goods industry in Arkansas contributed $20.4 billion to the U.S. gross domestic product in 2017.
The industry, responsible for food, beverage, household and personal care products, supports more than 255,000 Arkansas jobs, generating $1.1 trillion in labor income.
It also supports 16% of the state's economy.
Arkansas' 3rd Congressional District produces the most consumer packaged goods in the state, contributing $6.9 billion to the nation's GDP, followed by the 4th and 1st Districts' contributions of $4.6 billion. The 2nd District contributed $4.3 billion.
Nationwide, 20.4 million jobs are supported by the industry, generating $1.1 trillion in labor income and contributing $2 trillion to the GDP.
The Grocery Manufacturers Association trade group released the economic study on Tuesday. PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP did the research.
-- Nathan Owens
Index climbs 9.18 as 14 stocks gain
The Arkansas Index, a price-weighted index that tracks the largest public companies based in the state, closed Tuesday at 420.51, up 9.18 points.
"U.S. stocks rebounded from their worst day of the year after China's central bank signaled plans to keep its currency at a level stronger than some investors had first feared," said Chris Harkins, managing director at Raymond James & Associates in Little Rock.
Fourteen stocks in the index rose Tuesday. Shares of Murphy Oil Corp. fell 2.4%. Murphy USA shares jumped 6.5%. USA Truck shares rose 6.7%.
The index was developed by Bloomberg News and the Democrat-Gazette with a base value of 100 as of Dec. 30, 1997.
Business on 08/07/2019