CLYDE, Ohio — A Sandusky County company has been fined by federal safety regulators following a fatal accident last October in which an employee died from overexposure to toxic fumes.

U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration said on Wednesday that a 31-year-old employee of W.E. Soil Enhancement was overcome by hydrogen sulfide gas while pumping manure into a tanker truck at a farm near Clyde. The employee, who wasn’t identified by name, later died.

OSHA issued three safety citations and fined the company $16,800. The company has the option to contest fine and citations.

Following an investigation of the death, the agency said Bellevue-based W.E. Soil Enhancement did not provide proper safety controls, such as providing respiratory protection or monitoring units. OSHA also said the company hadn’t properly trained workers on the dangers of hazardous materials and did not properly develop a hazard communication program.

Hydrogen sulfide is a highly poisonous gas that occurs naturally in a variety of situations, including decomposing manure. The gas, which smells of rotten eggs in low concentration, is especially dangerous because it is heavier than air and can build up in low-lying or enclosed areas.

“Symptoms from overexposure to hydrogen sulfide gas can come on rapidly and quickly overcome a worker,” Kim Nelson, OSHA’s area director in Toledo, said in a statement. “The agriculture industry needs to educate its employees that the foul odors that come with manure spreading are not just unpleasant, they are unsafe and can be deadly. It is imperative that farm workers are protected from inhaling these gases.”

W.E. Soil Enhancement could not be reached for comment.

The detective who investigated the death for the Sandusky County Sheriff’s Office wasn’t available. It wasn’t clear whether the employee who died was the only worker on the job site.

Contact Tyrel Linkhorn at tlinkhorn@theblade.com or 419-724-6134.

First Published April 7, 2016, 4:00 a.m.