A man in his 60s died Thursday after his co-workers found him trapped underneath a bus in Orange County, Florida. Deputies responded to the scene around 11 a.m. He was taken to a hospital and later died.
The Orange County Sheriff's Office was called to the scene after the man was discovered underneath the bus, according to WESH. His co-workers found him before deputies arrived. He was taken to a hospital and later died, the station reports. The sheriff's office is now investigating the circumstances surrounding his death, and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration has launched its own parallel inquiry, per the same account.
Many of the specifics remain unknown. It has not been established whether the victim worked as a mechanic, what kind of bus was involved, or whether a vehicle lift or jack support may have failed — details the station's report does not address.
Two Agencies, Two Different Jobs
The Orange County Sheriff's Office Criminal Investigations Division includes a Homicide Squad that investigates homicides and unattended deaths. Its Victim Advocate Squad provides support and assistance to victims and families. The sheriff's office and OSHA are investigating this incident.
Federal regulation 29 CFR 1910.244(a)(2)(iii) requires that any vehicle or heavy load supported by jacks or mechanical hoists be cribbed, blocked, or otherwise mechanically secured before an employee works underneath it, according to the Federal Register. Separately, federal rule 29 CFR 1904.39 requires employers to report any work-related death to OSHA within eight hours of the incident or of learning of it, per the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
Another Vehicle-Related Fatality
A separate bus-related worker fatality occurred in September. In a tour bus collapse in a parking lot at Wolf Trap, a worker died after being trapped underneath the vehicle.
Nationally, workplace fatality data from 2023 provide a broader context.
A Busy Week for Central Florida Transit Safety
The fatal discovery comes during a rough stretch for bus safety news in the Orlando area. Just three days earlier, 16 people were injured when a Lynx public transit bus collided with another vehicle on West Colonial Drive in Orlando on October 5, sending 15 victims to local hospitals, according to FOX 35 Orlando. It is unclear whether that crash and the fatal workplace incident involve the same transit agency or vehicle type.
Orange County has also seen other serious workplace fatalities investigated by local authorities in recent months. In April, Orange County Sheriff's deputies led the death investigation after a worker was killed in a dryer collapse at the Hilton Orlando. In September 2026, a trauma alert was reported in Lakeland.
What Comes Next
Under Florida Statutes Chapter 440, employers must report any workplace fatality to their workers' compensation carrier within seven days, according to the Florida Senate. Florida law also addresses statutory death benefits for surviving dependents, and generally limits direct civil lawsuits against employers covered by workers' compensation absent intentional wrongdoing.
No further details about the victim's identity, employer, or the specific cause of the mechanical failure have been released. Both the sheriff's office and OSHA investigations remain open as authorities work to determine what happened before the man was found underneath the bus.
