Florida Man Killed in Gap Construction Accident Identified

New York State Police identified the machine operator killed in an accident at the Gap warehouse in Fishkill on Saturday as 58-year-old James Parisella of Fort Pierce, Fla.

Parisella was employee of Environmental Remediation Services Inc (ESRI) of Syracuse. ESRI had been subcontracted by Chicago-based Clayco Contractors, the firm hired to conduct demolition and rebuild work on a section of the warehouse damaged by an extensive fire in August. ESRI had been working on the site since Nov. 16, New York State Police said.

Parisella was operating a Komatsu excavator when a piece of steel and tin beam entered the cab of the machine around 2:30PM on Saturday.

The Village of Fishkill Police Department and Village of Fishkill Fire Department responded to the Gap distribution Center on Merritt Boulevard, where Parisella was pronounced dead at the scene.

Building 100 of the facility suffered severe damage during the Aug. 29 fire. Investigators determined the fire was intentionally set. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives offered a $7,500 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the individual who set the fire; Gap has promised to match the reward.