A well-known Menard County farmer has died after a grain bin entrapment incident Friday afternoon.
According to Menard County Chief Deputy Sheriff Ben Hollis, the sheriff’s office received a 9-1-1 call at approximately 1:26PM Friday of a man trapped in a grain bin in the 16000 block of Pin Hook Road in rural Petersburg, approximately 4 miles northwest of town.
Menard County sheriff’s deputies, the Petersburg Rural Fire Department, Menard County EMS, and the Menard County Rescue Squad immediately responded. The first units on scene learned that a 47-year old male was submerged in the grain within the bin. Responders, with the assistance of other local farmers, immediately began draining the grain from the bin and searching for the entrapped individual. According to KHQA, it took approximately 35 minutes from the time help arrived to locate the man.
The victim, later identified as Brian Satorius of Petersburg, was located and extricated from the bin. Despite life-saving measures, he succumbed to his injuries at a Springfield hospital later on Friday afternoon.
Hollis said in a released statement that Satorious untimely passing leaves behind a loss in the local farm community: “I feel it’s important to note that Mr. Satorius was an outstanding citizen and community member. He was a fierce advocate for agriculture, leading the Menard County Farm Bureau as its president, along with many other roles he fulfilled in the community. Brian was a friend to anyone and everyone — I don’t know if I’ve ever known a finer individual. He leaves behind a wife and two children.”
No further information about the incident is being released at this time.