Employees who work around heavy equipment must always be aware of their surroundings. Anything less, as this story shows, can be fatal.
A bulldozer driver watched helplessly as a co-worker was run over by another bulldozer.
The incident in Albion, IN, happened at a construction site after dark, but the property was well lit by light towers.
Police say the victim, a 46-year-old man, had been talking to a bulldozer driver and didn’t notice a second bulldozer backing up.
After finishing his conversation, the victim stepped in front of the second bulldozer. The driver he’d been talking to tried unsuccessfully to get the attention of the other bulldozer.
The man died at the scene.
Investigations into the incident aren’t complete. Key questions: Why didn’t the victim realize he was walking in front of a moving bulldozer, and why didn’t the equipment driver know a co-worker had stepped in front of the bulldozer?