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OSHA fined grocery chain H-E-B $17,878 after a San Antonio, Texas warehouse employee was killed in Oct. 2025 under unclear circumstances.
According to the San Antonio Express-News, the incident led to many questions about what exactly occurred.
Teresa Dominguez, 27, reportedly died of blunt trauma to her left leg in what was ruled what an accidental death at the in San Antonio site, according to the Bexar County Medical Examiner's Office.
When the incident first occurred, preliminary police reports stated Dominguez was located unconscious in a warehouse freezer and may have suffered injuries from a forklift, but H-E-B claimed the reports were not accurate.
The grocery chain instead claimed in an official statement that Dominguez was actually operating the forklift when another worker nearby saw she was "in distress" and reported she needed assistance.
OSHA's nearly $18K in fines includes a "serious" violation of $16,650 for H-E-B not properly evaluating worker performance every three years on forklift operation and operation of other vehicles, which meant more than a couple dozen workers were working in unsafe conditions. H-E-B must make necessary chnages to its operator evaluation program by August, OSHA said.
The agency also issed a $1,328 fine for hazardous conditions on walking-working surfaces in H-E-B's warehouse that needed repair or better markings. Reportedly, when Dominguez was killed, yellow metal guardrails and concrete needed repair at various spots within its warehouse.
The hazards in the warehouse environment meant 650 employees were working in unsafe conditions that fall under OSHA's "other" category of violations.
The Express-News said OSHA has cited H-E-B facilities across Texas for 13 violations total since 2021, resulting in over $200K in fines.
Past citations have included improper protective footwear, unclean work environment, not reporting workplace incidents, and other issues.
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