BENTON, N.Y. (AP) — An 11-year-old New York boy has been killed in an accident on his family farm in Benton.
Ervin Hoover was pronounced dead by the Yates County Coroner after he was entangled in auger machinery while cleaning out a grain silo, the Finger Lakes Time reported.
Yates County Sheriff Ron Spike said that preliminary findings indicate that it was an accident, however, the investigation is ongoing.
“He was in the barn with his dad and helped in this area previously, shoveling corn to the auger as feed for their livestock,” Spike said. “When the corn gets low in the silo, it requires shoveling to the auger. They were getting ready for the arrival of new corn that week.”
Yates County Fire Service will hold a critical incident stress debriefing that deputies will attend due to the emotional impact of the death, according to Spike.