INVESTIGATIONS were under way today to discover how a Blackburn farmworker fell to his death in a silo of pig feed.

The body of Andrew Bruce, 31, was found by a fellow worker lying on his back at the bottom of the feed hopper at Boydells Farm in Dalton, near Skelmersdale, yesterday afternoon.

He had fallen about 14 feet into about ten inches of "slushy" semi liquid pig feed and is believed to have been overcome by fumes.

The farm owner and colleagues tried in vain to reach the unconscious man and fire fighters from the specialist Rope Rescue Unit in St Annes were called in.

Police, 20 firefighters and ambulance crews, including the air ambulance team, arrived at the farm shortly after 1pm. Mr Bruce, who has a wife and family, was pronounced dead at the scene.

Six fire fighters set up a rope and pulley system and one officer was lowered into the silo of semi-solid pig feed to attach a harness to the body. A hole had to be cut in the roof of the building above the top of the silo to allow the operation to take place.

Fireman Trevor Sergeant from the Rope Rescue Unit said: "There wasn't a lot we could do for the casualty because he had probably died before we could get to him.

"Doctors from the air ambulance crew had already looked at him and if there had been any chance of getting this guy out alive the fire crew from Skelmersdale would have started the rescue operation."

The dead man was taken to Ormskirk General Hospital where a post mortem examination was due to be held today.