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OSHA Closes Probe Into Hyundai Megasite Death, Cites Forklift Driver on Phone and Fines Three Firms

The agency's findings detail operator phone use, triggering fines across a complex web of contractors.

Overview

  • OSHA closed its investigation into the March 21, 2025 death of Sunbok You, the CEO of subcontractor SBY America, at the HL-GA Battery construction site in Bryan County, Georgia.
  • The report says the forklift operator was talking on a cellphone and then ran away without checking on You, and identifies the driver as an employee of Beyond Iron Construction.
  • Beyond Iron Construction was fined $16,550, SBY America $9,268, and HL-GA Battery Company $1,800; Steel Brothers Development was investigated but not fined.
  • Investigators noted You wore a black vest and an eye patch and was not in the high-visibility vest required by site rules.
  • The site has a record of safety problems with 53 EMS calls over 16 months and at least 15 OSHA probes, and an HSI/ICE raid later detained 475 workers; SBY America and Beyond Iron are no longer contracted at the project.