Diane Ferris, says "he made my niece very happy."

Diane Ferris remembers the man who was months away from becoming a part of her family. Michael Raper was engaged to be married to her niece in February. Monday, Michael celebrated his 26th birthday.

Diane says "I just can't believe it. It just happened all so fast."

Late Tuesday night Michael was at work here at the BarS food plant in Lawton where he was in charge of cleaning the machinery.

Diane says "he slipped and went into the machine. He was still conscious at the time. So I can imagine the agony he was in and he lost both of his legs in this accident."

We're told it took about two hours to free michael, but the trauma was just too much. He died Wednesday afternoon, leaving behind a fiance and four children.

Diane says "she's going to have a tough time with this. He was a good person."

Department of Labor officials said an OSHA investigation is now ongoing and they can't talk about specifics. The investigation could take up to six months to complete.