Chicago Iron Worker Killed at Steel Production Facility

A Valparaiso iron worker and member of the Iron Workers Local 395 in Merrillville, Illinois was killed at a steel production facility in the Chicago area last Wednesday. The man, Michael Samuelson, was 39 when he passed away due to blunt force trauma. He was pronounced dead at 7:16 AM by the Lake County Coroner’s Office. Two other workers under contract were also injured at the plant owned and operated by ArcelorMittal, a Luxembourg-based multinational steel and iron manufacturer. Those two workers were taken to a local hospital and are in stable condition with minor injuries.

East Chicago police Lieutenant Marguerite Wilder told reporters that falling debris struck Samuelson and two other contractors as they worked at ArcelorMittal’s No. 3 steel production plant in Indiana Harbor West as they worked to clear it. “They were doing some type of work at the facility when debris fell,” Wilder said. However, none of the other actors involved would confirm the exact circumstances surrounding accident. She also said police plan to conduct a follow-up investigation.

Stephanie Samuelson, Mr. Samuelson’s widow, told CBS Chicago that “[h]e was a great husband and a great father. He enjoyed doing motocross with the kids and loved his profession as an ironworker,” Michael Samuelson is also survived by three children, ages 15, 11 and 5.