A 34-year-old Ohio father of two was found dead inside a trash compactor at the rear of a CVS store after his wife tracked his cell phone when he failed to come home from work.
Andrew "Andy" Strand had been working as a contractor at the CVS in the 1700 block of Chagrin Boulevard in Shaker Heights, Ohio. When he didn't return home Wednesday evening, his wife pinged his phone to the store's location and called the police just before 10 p.m.
What officers found was every family's worst nightmare.
Strand was a mechanic who had recently started his own company — a venture friends said he was "absolutely loving." He leaves behind two children: a son he coached in hockey and baseball, and a daughter he supported in dance and gymnastics, according to Fox News.
Danielle Gorbe, who described Strand as her husband's good friend for nearly 12 years, said this about his death in a GoFundMe description:
"Andy’s passing was sudden and unexpected leaving his family in disarray."
The fundraiser page painted the picture of a man whose world revolved around his kids:
"He was a loving, involved father; coaching his son's hockey and baseball teams. He loved supporting his daughter in dance as well as gymnastics. His wife and children were the center of his life and he loved them immensely."
Strand wasn't a name in the news before Wednesday. He was a guy who fixed things, built something of his own, and showed up for his kids' games. The kind of man who holds a community together without anyone noticing until he's gone.
Shaker Heights Police Commander John Cole confirmed that Strand's wife called police just before 10 p.m. Wednesday and that officers located him inside the compactor at the rear of the store. Beyond that, details are scarce.
The circumstances surrounding the incident remain under investigation. The Cuyahoga County medical examiner is determining the cause and manner of death. No determination has been made public as to whether Strand's death was an accident, foul play, or something else entirely.
Fox News Digital reached out to the Shaker Heights Police Department for additional comment, with no response noted.
Whatever the investigation ultimately reveals, a contractor dying inside a trash compactor at a pharmacy raises immediate questions about the safety protocols surrounding that equipment. Trash compactors are industrial machines. They exist in the back lots of retail stores across the country, often with minimal oversight once the store closes for the night.
If Strand was performing work near or on that compactor, what safeguards were in place? If he wasn't, how did he end up inside it? These aren't political questions — they're the basic questions any workplace fatality should trigger.
Contractors occupy a particular gray zone in workplace safety. They're on someone else's property, often working after hours, sometimes alone. They don't always have the institutional protections that full-time employees take for granted. A man who just started his own business — chasing the independence that comes with being your own boss — may have been working under exactly those conditions.
The Cuyahoga County medical examiner's findings will shape everything that follows — for the investigation, for the family, and potentially for questions about liability and safety at that CVS location. Until then, Strand's wife and two children are left waiting for answers about why their husband and father never came home.
She tracked his phone, hoping to find him. She found something no amount of technology could fix.
A GoFundMe is raising funds for the Strand family. He was 34 years old.
