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Italian man crushed to death by Grana Padano cheese wheels

August 7, 2023

A broken shelf in a cheese warehouse created a domino effect of falling cheese. Authorities now hope to determine whether the 74-year-old man was killed by one wheel of cheese or multiple.

https://p.dw.com/p/4UsJm
Wheels of Grana style cheese in Parma, Italy
Grana Pandano cheese originates in northern ItalyImage: xefesenkox/Pond5/IMAGO

A man in Italy has died after he was crushed by masses of Grana Padano cheese, firefighters said on Monday.

Giacomo Chiapparini, 74, was checking on the ripening wheels of cheese on Sunday when a metal shelf collapsed in his warehouse, setting off a domino effect.

The warehouse stored around 25,000 wheels of Grana Padano weighing 40 kilograms (88 pounds) each.

Firefighters worked for around 12 hours to free him from the cheese. They were only able to recover Chiapparini's body on Monday morning, when he was confirmed dead.

Investigation to clarify details

It is not clear what caused the shelf to collapse in the first place, but authorities suspect material fatigue or a technical fault.

An investigation is expected to determine whether it was one or multiple wheels of cheese that killed Chiapparini, a spokesperson for the Bergamo fire brigade said.

Chiapparini was the owner of the dairy factory, which produces Grana Padano, a hard cheese that resembles Parmesan.

The factory reportedly produces around 15,000 wheels of the cheese each year.

zc/wd (AFP, dpa)