Monday, August 7, 2017

Road paving worker John Davis, 55, with Merrill Construction crushed to death by a dirt roller-type vehicle in Webster, NH







WEBSTER, NH - A construction vehicle accident in Webster resulted in the death of a Concord employee Saturday morning, police said.

John Davis, 55, worked for Merrill Construction and was paving a driveway when the vehicle he was driving went down an embankment and rolled on top of him.

It's unclear if anyone currently lives at the single-family home where the work was being done.

Webster Police Chief Benedict Liberatore said only construction workers were at the residence Saturday.

A state medical examiner and first responders went to the scene at 8 Deer Meadow Road shortly before noon Saturday.

The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was also notified of Davis' death, and will be sending an investigator there Monday, officials said.

"It appears while working the victim lost control of the dirt roller-type vehicle causing him to go off an embankment and causing the equipment to roll on top of him," said Webster Officer Aaron Sparks.

The workplace accident occurred near the Concord-Webster line.



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WEBSTER, N.H. —

A construction worker was killed Saturday when a dirt roller he was operating tipped over on top of him in Webster, police said.

The accident happened shortly before 11:30 a.m. in a driveway on Deer Meadow Road near the Webster-Concord town line, said police, who are investigating.





"Approximately 11:21 a.m., Webster police along with the fire departments were dispatched to number 8 Deer Meadow Road for a report of a person pinned under construction equipment,” Webster Police Chief Ben Liberatore said.

Liberatore said Concord resident John Davis was backing up a dirt roller down a driveway when he lost control as he tried to make a turn.

"The operator was negotiating a curve, went off the curve a little bit and the vehicle appeared to roll over on top of the individual,” Liberatore said.

The 55-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene by paramedics.

Davis was a worker with FL Merrill Construction, which is based out of Loudon.

Authorities said the company was hired to repave a driveway of a home that was for sale.

There were several other people there during the time of the accident but the chief said no one actually witnessed what happened.

"He was backing down the driveway while everyone was at the top of the driveway waiting for some arrival of equipment,” Liberatore said.

Investigators remained on scene for much of the afternoon Saturday.

As officials work to piece together what exactly happened, the police chief says his focus is now turning to help those impacted by Davis' loss.

"Anything we can do to help those in need of assistance based on this tragic incident, we're more than happy to be there and we're there for them,” Liberatore said.

The accident is under investigation by several agencies, including OSHA.

Officials plan to return to the scene Sunday.