Police: Libertyville-area man's death likely a workplace accident

Police and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials are investigating how a 53-year-old Libertyville-area man was killed Wednesday morning by a falling trailer ramp near Vernon Hills in what appeared to be an accident.

Police said the man was on the 24800 block of North Milwaukee Avenue apparently trying to get a trailer ready to take to a worksite.

Investigators believe the man attached a trailer ramp to the bucket of an excavator with a chain so he could move the ramp into place. But it appears the chain slipped and the ramp fell on the man, said Lake County sheriff's Deputy Chief Christopher Covelli.

Covelli said the man was discovered by one of his employees around 6:30 a.m.

Covelli said investigators believe the man had been dead for an hour or two before he was discovered.

The Lake County coroner's office will perform an autopsy soon.