Man dead after falling into tanker truck during cleanup

A man is dead after falling into a tanker truck used for hauling chemicals while hosing it off on Friday evening. 

The incident occurred on Friday, June 7th at about 5 p.m. at the Two Rivers Terminal agriculture fertilizer plant on Glade Road in rural Franklin County, Washington. 

According to Apple Valley News, 56-year-old Viktor Voloshin was on top of a tanker truck hosing it out when he apparently fell into the tank. Other employees reportedly lost track of Voloshin, an dhe was later found face-up at the bottom of the tanker. Security cameras reveal he was last seen at 4:15 p.m. standing on a ladder while hosing out the trailer. 

When first responders arrived, the air inside the tanker was determined to be fairly toxic, but it is still unclear if Voloshin died from the gasses inside the tanker, or from the fall. 

“It was a 70% Sulfur, used commonly in agriculture crop production, but it does off gas into hydrogen sulfide, which the gasses, you know, over a period of time, 15 or 30 minutes you know can be hazardous and make the atmosphere hazardous. So, we did a quick monitor with our gas detection equipment,” said Franklin County Fire District 3 Chief Mike Harris. 

Voloshin was reportedly the father of 12 children, reported Tri-City Herald. No further information on the incident has been released.