By the time authorities reached the U.S. Postal Service’s massive Detroit Network Distribution Center in Allen Park, the reality was grim. A man in his 30s, a maintenance employee, was found dead inside one of the facility’s mail sorting machines.

Investigators believe he had been trapped there for six to eight hours before anyone realized something was wrong.

The discovery sent federal and state officials into motion

Because the incident happened inside a federal building, U.S. investigators are leading the case, with the Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration also reviewing what went wrong.

For now, authorities are calling the death an accident, but that label could change depending on what they find.

Mail sorting machines process and route thousands of letters and packages every hour

They use belts, rollers, and weighing systems that move mail through at high speed.

After sorting machines finish, the mail is grouped by ZIP code or route and placed into trays or bins. Those trays are sent to the right facility, either another distribution hub or a local post office.

There, workers organize it again by delivery route before carriers load it into trucks for the final stretch to homes and businesses.

Maintenance staff often work inside and around mail sorters, which can be quite large, inspecting sensors and cleaning mechanical parts.

If the power isn’t fully locked out or safety protocols fail, someone could easily become trapped in moving machinery without anyone noticing until it’s far too late.

The Detroit USPS mail facility is one of the region’s busiest hubs

It’s a sprawling industrial space where noise and motion never really stop.

According to NBC4i.com, USPS said operations there remain ongoing, though the loss has clearly hit employees hard. 

Officials expressed condolences to the worker’s family, calling it a tragic event for the entire postal community.