Sunday, January 16, 2005

Weekly Toll

Taxi driver killed in an accident

WESTAMPTON, PA- A Mount Holly taxi driver was killed and two of his passengers were injured early yesterday morning after his cab crashed into a tractor-trailer making an illegal U-turn on Route 51, police said. Charles Terry, 65, was declared dead shortly after the 4:18 a.m. accident, police Detective Anthony Marino said. Terry was employed by Mount Holly Taxi.


Two people killed in North Side taxi crash

Chicago,IL — Two people were killed and two others were in serious to critical condition early Saturday after a Crash on Chicago's North Side. A car traveling south on Ashland Avenue slammed into the side of a taxi at the intersection of Wellington Avenue just before 6:00 a.m.
According to Fire Media Chief Kevin MacGregor the driver and passenger of the taxi were killed in the accident. Two other people were taken in serious to critical condition to Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center, MacGregor said.


Auto repair shop employee shot dead during robbery

DETROIT, MI- An employee of a Detroit auto repair shop was shot dead during robbery yesterday. Thirty-six-year-old Ali Abutan was found dead on the floor of the safe at Airport Quick Lube and Service Center.


Four local service men

Just a few days before Christmas, Halliburton employee Brett Hunter, 29, was killed when someone bombed a military mess tent at lunchtime. Timothy Bell, another Halliburton employee, has been missing since his supply convoy was attacked in April.


Raleigh worker dies under pile of dirt

RALEIGH, NC -- Rescue efforts futile at Wakefield Plantation site in northeast Raleig. A construction worker died in the trench he was digging Friday morning after 10 feet of clay and dirt buried him, according to authorities. Jose Santo Hernandez Martinez, 32, of 2547 New Hope Church Road, Raleigh, was digging holes for a Wakefield Plantation home in northeast Raleigh, officials said. Beazer Homes is developing the subdivision where the accident occurred.


Police officer dies in standoff

Albany,NY- A 14-hour standoff in Connecticut has ended with the death of a police officer and a former state corrections officer who'd been holding him hostage. Police said the hostage-taker killed the police officer, and then took his own life. Thursday night, Newington police officer Peter Lavery was shot and wounded as he handled a domestic violence call at a home. When he didn't respond to calls, state and local police came to his aid.


Teens rode along when officer was killed

Gainesville,GA- Two 16-year-old girls, part of a police apprentice program, were riding with Pendergrass police officer Chris Ruse and a fellow officer when Ruse was shot and killed Wednesday night. One of the teens was in Ruse's patrol car, Police Chief Rob Russell said Friday. The other was riding with an officer Ruse called for backup as he began chasing a pickup truck that wouldn't pull over for a traffic violation. Ruse, 45, the father of three daughters, was shot as he approached the two men in the pickup after it crashed near Talmo.


Autopsy: Batten died from head trauma

MACEDONIA - An autopsy on the body of Pottawattamie County road worker, Edward W. Batten, indicates he died from blunt force trauma to his head. Pottawattamie County Chief Deputy Sheriff Jim Matthai said Batten's death has been ruled an accident, based on all the evidence. Matthai said a farmer plowing near the culvert where Batten's body was found Thursday reported seeing nothing suspicious in the area. A motorist came upon the empty road grader Batten had been operating near 385th Street and Aspen Road. The motorist found Batten's body at the bottom of the 10-to-13-foot-deep culvert, the sheriff's office office reported. "It appears he fell and hit his head," Matthai said. "There is no sign of any suspicious activity." The autopy was performed by the Douglas County coroner. The 48-year-old Batten, a Carson resident, will be buried Tuesday at 10:30 a.m. from Carson United Methodist Church.


1 killed, 5 injured in I-65 accidents

Indianapolis, IN- Investigators believe the accidents began just south of the Ind. 39 exit when returning holiday travelers encountered heavy traffic near Lebanon. Keller said a woman was driving south when she saw the traffic stopped before her. As she tried to avoid a collision, her car crossed the median and was broadsided by a van driven by Christopher J. Bryan, 43, Tipp City, Ohio. Bryan, an employee of Gordon Food Products, was pronounced dead at the scene. He did not appear to have been wearing his seat belt although an air bag deployed, Keller said. He was driving to a job northwest of Indianapolis, Keller said.


Adult gift store clerk killed in Santa Clarita shooting; three others wounded

SANTA CLARITA, Calif. - A man shot and killed a clerk at an adult gift store and may have shot and wounded two other people nearby before shooting himself, authorities said Sunday. Robert Wheeler, 25, returned to the store 20 minutes after the first attack Saturday to shoot the clerk again, sheriff's deputies said. The slain clerk was identified as Christopher Ray Simons, 24, of Saugus, the coroner's office said. Wheeler called deputies from a pay phone to say he had killed the employee, then shot himself, sheriff's Deputy Josie Woolum said.


Restaurant worker killed, Rowdy teens ejected, attacked pair, cops say

WEST NEW YORK - One employee was beaten to death and another was hospitalized with injuries after the pair chased a group of rowdy teenagers out of a Chinese restaurant just before midnight Saturday, officials said yesterday. Lu Xian, 38, of Flushing, Queens, went into cardiac arrest and died early yesterday after sustaining extensive internal injuries in the Saturday night attack, Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said. Dejian Gheng, of Guttenberg, remained hospitalized at the Jersey City Medical Center last night with non-life threatening injuries, DeFazio said.


Salem men killed when van leaves icy road

Salem, OR- Two forest contractors from Salem were killed Monday morning when a van they were riding in slipped off an icy road, careened down an embankment and struck a tree on Highway 38 near Reedsport. The driver, Leobarto Velazquez, 41, of Salem, and a passenger, Juan Carlos Rios, 22, of Salem, died at the scene, said Lt. Gregg Hastings of the Oregon State Police. The van, carrying employees of BP Reforestation of Salem, was traveling west on Highway 38 about seven miles east of Reedsport about 6:10 a.m. when the eight-passenger vehicle lost traction and went off the north side of the highway.


Murder suspect waited on customers as victim died in bathroom

CARIBOU, Maine — A 19-year-old coffee shop employee kicked his female supervisor in the head, mouth and chest, then served customers while the victim died of injuries in the bathroom, according to an affidavit released Tuesday. Christopher Shumway told Maine State Police detectives that he killed Erin Sperrey and provided details that were included in the affidavit released in conjunction with his initial court appearance on a murder charge.


Man Killed After Being Struck, Sent Over Guardrail, TRIMARC Worker Was Helping In Traffic Problem

LOUISVILLE, KY -- A local AAA worker [Gary Resnik] was killed Tuesday when the driver of a sanitation truck hit him and sent him over a highway guardrail, causing him to fall several stories to his death. The tragedy took place at about 9 a.m. near the Sherman Minton Bridge, WLKY NewsChannel 32's Allison Gardner reported. TRIMARC was called in to help with a traffic problem in the westbound lanes of Interstate 64. As the worker, who also works for the American Automobile Association, was directing motorists in the right lane to get over into the left lanes, the sanitation truck collided with a cattle truck in one of the left lanes.


Wisconsin man dies when salt pile collapses on him

ARCADIA, Wis. - A Wisconsin man is dead after being buried under a pile of salt in a Trempealeau County highway department shop in Arcadia. County highway commissioner Jim Johnson says 78-year-old Edward Woychik of Arcadia was in the county's salt shed today when a pile of road salt collapsed on top of him.


Work crew prisoner killed on I-65

Birmingham, AL- A state prisoner on a highway work crew was killed Tuesday, the third in less than two years, when a driver swerved off Interstate 65 north of Montgomery and struck him. A second work crew prisoner was hospitalized with serious injuries, officials said.


Barberton worker is killed on job

BARBERTON, OH - A 21-year veteran of the Barberton Street Department was killed Wednesday when he was struck by a pickup truck. Barberton Police Lt. William Pfeiffer said Robert Krska, 44, of Barberton, was working on Wooster Road North when he was struck by a GMC pickup driven by Clyde Dolly, 56, of Massillon. Pfeiffer said the case is under investigation and no charges have been filed.


1 killed, 1 injured in Flatiron District shooting

NY- A man was fatally shot and his son-in-law wounded Wednesday inside a building in the Flatiron District where scores of merchants sell bootleg clothing, police said. The slaying, the first in Manhattan this year, is the latest in a string of fatal incidents connected to the booming counterfeit goods industry. Yesterday's 4:15 p.m. shooting happened on the second floor of 15 W. 27th St., a 17-story building between Fifth Avenue and Broadway. Police said the suspect made his way to the second floor, where a handful of merchants sell their wares, mostly stylish clothing and sneakers, from small stalls. The victim, identified by friends as Ali Nasseral Din, a 40-something Lebanese immigrant who sent much of his earnings to his wife and four children overseas, was standing by his stall near the top of the stairs when the suspect approached, police said.


Officer Dies After Being Shot During Apparent Bank Robbery, Elementary School Under Lockdown

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A Columbus police officer has died after being shot Thursday morning during an apparent bank robbery. The shooting took place at about 10:45 a.m. at a Fifth-Third Bank. Columbus police said Officer Bryan Hurst was working special duty inside the bank when a man in a ski mask tried to rob it, WCMH-TV reported.


Hialeah driver killed on I-95

Hialeah, FL- A truck driver was killed Thursday on Interstate 95 while walking back to his semitrailer, the Florida Highway Patrol said. Adrian B. Avila, 52, of Hialeah, was pulled over on the side of the road in the southbound lanes near the Okeechobee Boulevard exit, police said. He was hit by a 2004 Lexus about 1:45 p.m. while walking back to the cab of his truck.


Trash company employee killed in accident

Allentown, PA- A 62-year-old employee of J.P. Mascaro and Sons has died after he was run over by a garbage truck at the company's trash transfer station in Franconia Township Thursday. Francis J. Pienta, of Spring City, was struck when the truck backed over him as it attempted to unload trash into the transfer station on Wile Road. Peinta was taken to Grand View Hospital in West Rockhill Township, where he was pronounced dead.


Worker dies in church construction mishap

OAK GROVE, Ala. A 42-year-old Sylacauga man died in a construction accident Thursday when an awning collapsed at First Free Will Baptist Church on U-S Highway 280. Talladega County Chief Deputy Jimmy Kilgore said the worker -- James Orvell Patterson -- was working on the front-entrance awning when it split causing a large wooden beam to fall pinning Patterson against a utility trailer. He said the accident occurred at about 9:30 a-m. Kilgore said investigators with the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will try and determine what caused the structure to collapse.


Former Truro police chief dies in SEMASS accident

TRURO, MA - The Occupational Safety and Health Administration has opened an investigation into possible workplace safety violations by J&L Enterprises of North Truro, after one of its trash truck drivers died following an accident at the SEMASS plant in Rochester. Former Truro Chief of Police John Hurd, 62, died Sunday, Jan. 2, at Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston as a result of injuries sustained in an accident at SEMASS on Dec. 29.


Railroad contractor dies after being struck by train

Amarillo, TX- An Amarillo man died Wednesday night after a Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway train hit him. Gene Blackburn Harrison, 42, was pronounced dead at the scene, said Scott Sutton, chief deputy for the Carson County Sheriff's Office.


Officer Dies After Being Shot During Attempted Bank Robbery, Elementary School Under Lockdown

COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Police released surveillance photos taken inside a bank where a Columbus police officer was shot and killed earlier Thursday. The shooting took place at about 10:45 a.m. at Fifth-Third Bank, located at the 6200 block of East Broad Street, near McNaughten Road. Columbus police said Officer Bryan Hurst was working special duty inside the bank when a man in a ski mask tried to rob it, NBC 4's Mike Bowersock reported.


Freak crash turns fatal

HAMILTON, NJ -- Three Trenton city workers watched in horror yesterday as a Princeton Township man -- apparently stunned from a traffic accident --stepped in front of a tractor- trailer on Route 29 southbound and was crushed to death. Police identified the victim as Gerald R. Covello Jr., 50, of 90 Christopher Drive, Princeton Township.


Highway Worker Killed in 880 Crash

San Francisco, CA- A van crashed into two workers on the side of Interstate 880 Thursday afternoon, killing one of them. It happened in the northbound lanes south of Marina Boulevard in San Leandro, when a Chrysler van veered off the road just before 1:30pm. The California Highway Patrol says both people who were struck were subcontractors working for the Adopt-a-Highway program. One man was taken to the hospital. Authorities did not release the identity of the man who died. No charges have been filed against the driver. "I believe eyewitnesses say he was just driving normally and came down the tracks and struck the people," said Sgt. Bob Buckles. The CHP is investigating whether a tire blowout caused the crash.


D.C. Worker Collapses at DMV, Dies

Washington, DC- Colleagues Say Fumes Hampered Breathing. A D.C. Department of Motor Vehicles employee collapsed Tuesday while working at the city's inspection station on Half Street SW and later died. Department officials said Alfred L. Staton, 41, an inspector, collapsed shortly before 8 a.m. Employees called 911 and went across the street to a fire station for help, but Staton later died.


Recycling Worker Breaks Neck, Dies

Churchton, Md. (AP) - Anne Arundel County police say a Laurel man died Thursday as he adjusted a load on a recycling truck in Churchton. The State Medical Examiner's Office says an autopsy shows 54-year-old Benjamin Estrada's neck was broken, but authorities aren't saying how that happened. It happened around 1:20 Thursday afternoon at Venetian Way and North Shore Parkway. Police say Estrada went up in a bucket-type lift on a Bates Trucking Company recycling truck. Another employee, who was using a lever to raise the lift, told police he heard Estrada say something before slumping over. Police say there were a few bruises on Estrada's face and chin, but no signs of bleeding.


Police union: Officers lack emergency training

STAMFORD, CT -- The city's police union claims that officers are not provided the training and equipment that would have helped save the life of a sergeant who died last week after having a heart attack on duty. Sgt. James Delano, 51, collapsed while working at the front desk at police headquarters on Dec. 28. Other officers on duty tried to revive him until paramedics arrived. He was in a coma for a week before dying Tuesday at Bridgeport Hospital. His funeral and burial took place Friday. Officer Michael Merenda, president of the Stamford Police Association, said last week that the city has failed to train officers in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and has not purchased defibrillators for the department's headquarters or officers' squad cars.


Three dead, one missing after tugboat and barges swept over spillway of Ohio River dam

INDUSTRY, Pa. (AP) -- A tugboat and three barges sank Sunday after being swept over a dam spillway on the Ohio River by currents made stronger by heavy rains, killing three crew members. One person was missing and believed to be aboard the sunken boat. The deceased crew members were identified as Scott Stewart, 36, of Wheeling, W.Va.; Tom Fisher, 25, of Latrobe, Pa.; and Edward Crevda, 22, of West Brownsville, Pa.


Second Death In Suspected CO2 Poisoning At McDonald's

SANFORD, Fla. -- A second victim has died as the result of suspected carbon dioxide poisoning at the Sanford McDonald's. Christopher Edgar died Sunday morning, according to Sgt. Dave Morgenstern, of the Sanford Police Department. Edgar had been taken to the Central Florida Regional Hospital in Sanford after being overcome by fumes in the restaurant on U.S. 17-92 in Sanford on Saturday. George Torres, 50, of Apopka, died Saturday. He was a driver for the NuCO2 company, which delivers the carbon dioxide used by area McDonald's restaurants to put the fizz in soft drinks.



Ceres officer dies and other is injured in gunfight

CERES, Calif. - A police officer died and another was in critical condition Monday morning after a gunfight in which the shooter was also killed, officers said. Sergeant Howard Stevenson died from the multiple gun shots he suffered Sunday evening, according to a release from the Modesto Police Department. The department was "deeply saddened" by the loss, the release stated.


Convenience Store Worker Shot In Gentilly

NEW ORLEANS -- New Orleans police are investigating the overnight shooting of a convenience store worker in Gentilly during an apparent robbery attempt. The 32-year-old worker's name is not being released. He was being treated Monday at Charity Hospital for gunshot wounds to the chest and abdomen.


Trucker’s death leads to ‘what if’ questions

Columbia, SC- Truck driver Joey Stone, a 22-year-old asthmatic, learned to be a trucker to get away from the fumes he inhaled as a welder in his native Canada. Yet a toxic chlorine cloud poisoned Stone’s lungs last week in Graniteville, killing the outgoing Canadian in his sleeping bag as he waited to deliver his cargo to Avondale Mills. “It’s so ironic. The gas got him,” said Kathy Curtis, 42, who said her son, Chris, is like a brother to Stone. “It’s like it just chased him.” Stone, of Stanstead, a town near the Quebec-Vermont border, was found Thursday in the sleeper compartment of his Freightliner. It was parked in a mill parking lot about 250 yards from where a Norfolk Southern train carrying hazardous materials struck a stopped rail car.


Three killed in rampage at maintenance garage

Dixon, IL— A man was being held Wednesday after a bloody rampage at a state maintenance garage. The man's estranged wife and two others were killed, and two others were wounded. According to police, Jordan — armed with an assault rifle, a 12-gauge pump shotgun, a 9 mm semiautomatic pistol and a .45-caliber semiautomatic pistol — walked into the Department of Transportation garage Tuesday and opened fire on his wife, department employee Donna Renee Jordan, 31. She died at the scene. Walking back outside, he then shot David Gordon, an employee of HCI Delivery Services who was dropping off a package, and Jerry Wayne Hopper, a Forestry Department employee who was having work done on his state vehicle, police said. The garage is used for maintenance on state vehicles. Gordon and Hopper both died at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital.


Worker dies in fall from house roof

VA- A construction worker fell to his death this morning while working on the roof of a house under construction in western Henrico County. The name of the victim, in his 50s, was being withheld by police until his family can be notified.


D.C. crash is 2nd fatal accident in a week for Air Methods Corp.

Denver, CO- Three people were killed in the last week in emergency medical helicopters flown for Denver-based Air Methods Corp. On Monday night, a Eurocopter EC-135 helicopter plunged into the Potomac River near Washington, D.C., after delivering a patient to a nearby hospital. It likely collided with a 300-foot- tall construction crane on the Woodrow Wilson Bridge while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport, the company said. The pilot is missing and presumed dead, a paramedic died and a nurse survived. Last Wednesday, a Eurocopter AS-350 helicopter crashed in the woods near Faulkner, Miss., after returning to its base in heavy weather. The pilot died.


Fatal crash closes Interstate 94 again

CLEARWATER, Minn. - Authorities closed Interstate 94 in both directions Sunday because of a fatal crash near Clearwater, the second time in two days that a fatal accident had forced a closure of the freeway. Initial details were sketchy. The crash happened just before 4 p.m. in the eastbound lanes and involved several vehicles, the State Patrol said. At least two people were killed. Steven M. Toth, 51, of Bradford, Ontario, died at the scene of injuries he suffered in the crash, the Hennepin County medical examiner's office said.


Worker Shot, Killed At Michigan Bowling Alley

KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- Police in Kalamazoo are investigating a shooting death during a robbery at a bowling alley in Kalamazoo on Sunday. Investigators said Steven Kerr, 41, of Kalamazoo, was shot several times at AMF Harpo's Lanes. Police Capt. Jim Mallery said two masked men armed with handguns entered the bowling alley shortly after it opened at 11 a.m. The men were there for several minutes as they tied up employees and demanded money, police said. There were four workers, but no customers inside the business at the time. Mallery said Kerr was in a separate part of the bowling alley -- away from the other employees -- when he was shot.


Second Death In Suspected CO2 Poisoning At McDonald's

SANFORD, Fla. -- A second victim has died as the result of suspected carbon dioxide poisoning at the Sanford McDonald's. Christopher Edgar died Sunday morning, according to Sgt. Dave Morgenstern, of the Sanford Police Department. Edgar had been taken to the Central Florida Regional Hospital in Sanford after being overcome by fumes in the restaurant on U.S. 17-92 in Sanford on Saturday. George Torres, 50, of Apopka, died Saturday. He was a driver for the NuCO2 company, which delivers the carbon dioxide used by area McDonald's restaurants to put the fizz in soft drinks.


Courthouse death inquiry

A fatality inquiry starts today into the death of 16-year-old Kyle Young. The Edmonton youth was shackled and handcuffed when he fell five stories to his death down a closed elevator shaft at the Edmonton courthouse last January. A review of Kyle's death by Alberta's Justice Department says the guards pushed the boy against the elevator door, the door opened and he fell to his death. Police investigated the boy's death, but no charges were laid.
Ceres officer dies and other is injured in gunfightCERES, Calif. - A police officer died and another was in critical condition Monday morning after a gunfight in which the shooter was also killed, officers said. Sergeant Howard Stevenson died from the multiple gun shots he suffered Sunday evening, according to a release from the Modesto Police Department. The department was "deeply saddened" by the loss, the release stated.


Trucker killed

SADSBURY, PA-- It took three hours for emergency personnel to extricate a man killed in a mid-morning tractor-trailer accident Monday. A call for the accident involving two tractor-trailers went out at 9:41 a.m., said Dave Reynolds, deputy fire chief of the Sadsburyville Fire Company.When emergency personnel arrived at the intersection of Route 30 and Compass Road, one driver was pronounced dead at the scene, while the other driver sustained only minor injuries.


Worker Killed In Bizarre Bakery Accident

LOGAN TOWNSHIP, N.J. (KYW) An employee (Alex Santizo-Ramirez, 34)died Monday at a South Jersey bakery after falling into a 500-gallon mixer. According to officials, the process worker who was killed was looking into the top inspection hole of the 20-foot-deep giant mixing vat when he apparently fell in.


16-Year Veteran CDC Correctional Officer Dies From Inmate Stabbing Attack

SACRAMENTO, Calif., -- Correctional Officer Manuel A. Gonzalez, Jr., 43, a 16-year employee of the California Department of Corrections, died today following a stabbing incident involving an inmate at California Institution for Men (CIM). Today's tragic murder of a California correctional peace officer is the first in nearly 20 years.


Convenience Store Worker Shot In Gentilly

NEW ORLEANS -- New Orleans police are investigating the overnight shooting of a convenience store worker in Gentilly during an apparent robbery attempt. The 32-year-old worker's name is not being released. He was being treated Monday at Charity Hospital for gunshot wounds to the chest and abdomen.



Worker dies in fall from house roof

VA- A construction worker fell to his death this morning while working on the roof of a house under construction in western Henrico County. The name of the victim, in his 50s, was being withheld by police until his family can be notified.


Survivor guides rescuers with cellphone

Wyo.- Three members of a Steamboat Springs air-ambulance crew were killed in a plane crash near Rawlins, Wyo., and a fourth person was rescued early Wednesday after a four-hour search during a snowstorm. The crash of the Yampa Valley Air Ambulance flight Tuesday night about 3 miles east of Rawlins Municipal Airport claimed the lives of Mountain Flight Services pilot Tim Benway, 35, air-ambulance director and flight nurse Dave Linner, 36, and nurse Jennifer Wells, 30.


Small plane clipped fence during landing; passenger seriously hurt

EL CAJON, CA – A single-engine plane crashed while landing at Gillespie Field here yesterday afternoon, fatally injuring the pilot and seriously injuring a female passenger. The woman was taken to Sharp Memorial Hospital in Kearny Mesa; the pilot, James Thompson, 67, of Anacortes, Wash., was airlifted to UCSD Medical Center in Hillcrest, said Michael Scott, Division Chief with the El Cajon Fire Department.



Man dead in plane crash

LEESBURG FL— A Groveland musician was killed late Monday night when his Cherokee Piper airplane crashed during heavy fog into a swampy area three miles away from Leesburg Regional Airport. John Porter McGaughy, 60, was pronounced dead at the scene about 4 a.m. Tuesday after emergency responders found the four-seat, single engine aircraft nose-down in about three feet of water on property off State Road 44. Neighbors reported hearing a crash on the Cutrale-owned land off of Shady Acres Road about 11:30 p.m. Monday.


Workers find body of pilot in river

OXON HILL, Md. -- Helicopter may have hit a crane that lines the Wilson Bridge. The body of the pilot whose Virginia-based medical helicopter crashed in the Potomac River was pulled from the water yesterday. "The body was found about 40 yards from where the helicopter initially went in the water," said Maryland State Police Sgt. Rob Moroney. The front half of the helicopter and tail had been sheared off from the midsection. Joseph Schaefer, 56, of Sterling, Va., was the second person confirmed dead in Monday night's crash. The body of paramedic Nicole Kielar, 29, of Henrico County, was recovered from the wreckage Tuesday. Flight nurse Jonathan Godfrey, 36, of Chesapeake Beach, Md., was the lone survivor and was expected to recover from broken bones and bruises.


Road maintenance worker killed in hit-and-run crash

A Newberry Township road maintenance worker was killed yesterday in a hit-and-run accident near the intersection of Sipe and Culhane roads. An adult man and a juvenile who were seen running from the scene were later picked up and were questioned by police but not charged as the investigation continues, according to reports. According to the York County Coroner's Office, Perry Bupp, 42, of Etters, was fatally injured just after 2:30 p.m. when a car struck a township truck, then hit him. The victim was clearing brush at the time of the accident. He was pronounced dead at the scene, according to the coroner


Worker killed after site's walls collapse, Concrete slabs trap and kill a Freeport man and leave a co-worker in serious condition

LOVES PARK -- Investigators will spend the next several weeks trying to determine how a Freeport man was crushed to death and another man was seriously injured when concrete walls fell on top of them at a home construction site. The accident occurred Thursday morning on Golden Eagle Drive in the foundation area of a new home site in King's Acres subdivision. Authorities said the men were employees of Stateline Concrete Sawing and Drilling in Rockford who were in the process of removing concrete walls from the home's foundation when two of the walls collapsed. Craig Bicker, 47, of Freeport was killed in the accident. An autopsy performed Thursday showed that he died of crushing chest injuries. Loves Park Fire Chief Phil Foley estimated the weight of the two walls at 8,000 pounds.


Local man dies in Florida fall

Cleveland,GA- A Cleveland man died last Thursday when he fell three stories while installing a skylight panel on an office building near Miami. Jerome Pruitt, 42, of Cleveland, was employed by W.S. Neilson in Alpharetta, said his aunt, Gloria Sutton of Cleveland. Pruitt was part of a crew contracted to work on an office building under construction at 2331 Ponce De Leon in Coral Gables, Fla., said Randy Rossman, spokesman for the Miami-Dade County Police.


Horse ranch foreman found shot to death

BEAVERCREEK -- There are no suspects in the death of Francisco Javier Basto Tuyub, whose body was found at the Clackamas County ranch. A man was found shot to death Thursday morning on a horse ranch in rural Clackamas County where he lived and worked.


Small plane's wreckage removed from crash site

Birmingham,AL- A helicopter lifted the wreckage of a small private plane out of a swamp Thursday afternoon where it crashed Tuesday, killing two brothers. The plane parts, set on a trailer bed by a Sikorsky helicopter, were then trucked to nearby Huntsville International Airport, where investigators will try to discern the cause of the crash. Killed in the accident were licensed pilots David Craig Hogan, 42, of Madison and Steven Patrick Hogan, 40, of Huntsville. They were the only people on the plane that crashed at 6:15 p.m. Tuesday, shortly after takeoff.


Man charged with murder in death of burley warehouse watchman

HARRODSBURG, Ky. - A central Kentucky man was charged with murder Friday in the death of a night watchman for a tobacco warehouse. James M. Crews, 51, of Salvisa, was lodged in the Boyle County jail after officers found him near the Kentucky Burley Tobacco Warehouse where 34-year-old Darren Maddox was shot, Harrodsburg police said.



Legionnaires Disease Fears Close Building

TAMPA - A building leased by Tampa's veterans hospital was closed Friday after an employee diagnosed with symptoms of Legionnaires disease died and two other workers developed respiratory illnesses, said hospital executives and employees. Sandra Holley, a nurse who worked in the building, died Monday at Tampa General Hospital of ``atypical pneumonia and its complications,'' according to her obituary.


Pilot from Hampden dies in crash at fogbound Granite State airport

SWANZEY, N.H. - A Hampden, Maine, pilot was killed Thursday night when his cargo plane crashed in heavy fog at Dillant Hopkins Airport. Police said Douglas Nelson, 46, was believed to be the only person on board. Authorities said a report came in at 10:18 p.m. that the plane crashed upon landing and caught fire after impact. Emergency crews quickly extinguished the fire. Nelson, a full-time employee of Bennington, Vt.- based air carrier AirNow, had departed from Bangor International Airport in his twin-engine turboprop plane. His cargo was a load of packages to be delivered overnight, and he was bound for Manchester, N.H.


Second job-related accident in 8 days kills Sylacaugan

SYLACAUGA — For the second time in eight days, a job-related accident in Sylacauga has resulted in the death of an employee. Friday morning’s accident occurred at Farr Metal, just off Alabama 21, south of Sylacauga. Farr Metal is a metal fabricator, heating and air conditioning, commercial roofing and sheet metal company. Sgt. Kenny Archer with the Talladega County Sheriff’s Department said 44-year-old Dale L. (Doc) Branson was killed when he was struck by a 44 foot long, 6 inch in diameter steel pipe that rolled off a forklift. The first accident occurred Thursday, Jan. 6, at a church construction site in Oak Grove. James Orvell Patterson, 42, of Sylacauga was working on an awning under construction on the front entrance of First Free Will Baptist Church on U.S. 280 when it collapsed.


FINAL HEROIC GESTURE: 27-YEAR-OLD ATTEMPTED TO ASSIST CO-WORKER WHO WAS BEING BEATEN

Newark, CA- grocery employee fatally shot during robbery. Rodrigo De Loza cared so much about people, he didn't think twice before jumping in to help someone. Thursday night, that instinct cost De Loza his life. Three masked robbers stormed into Ramirez Market in Newark about 8:30 p.m. and scooped more than $2,000 from the cash register. The owner, Carlos Aleman, was face down on the floor when an employee tried to flee. One of the robbers caught him and was beating him when De Loza emerged from the back, where he had finished cutting meat for the night. He saw his friend in trouble and tried to intervene. He was shot in the back and died an hour later at Eden Medical Center in Castro Valley.


Two Die in Plane Crash

LAKELAND, FL -- Flight instructor and doctor are killed in Cessna accident shortly after takeoff. A twin-engine Cessna plane crashed and burned at Lakeland Linder Regional Airport Friday afternoon, killing both its pilot and passenger. The plane crashed about 3:30 p.m., seconds after taking off from runway 27, headed west, according to Lakeland police. Danny Ferrer, the owner of the Cessna Skymaster, identified the pilot as Lakeland flight instructor Don Palas. Ferrer said Palas was about 53 years old, the father of several children and an accomplished pilot.


Hillsboro community helps widow, children

Hillsboro, TX- More than a week after a 32-year-old city of Hillsboro employee was buried alive in a trench cave-in, local leaders, city officials and a spunky neighborhood association remain focused on helping his widow and two small children. The tragedy may be unusual for Hillsboro, Mayor Will Lowrance says, but the community's reaction isn't. "It's the character of the people here," the Hillsboro native said of public concern for the family of Vicente Garcia. "To us, it doesn't make any difference whether it's a kid with a malignancy or a family that's lost everything in a fire. They're part of our extended family."



Lost wing a prob fucus in fatal plan crash

HOUSTON - A lost wing will be a focus of a federal investigation of the crash of a vintage plane near Lake Conroe that killed its pilot and a passenger, officials said. The crash occurred near the site of another crash involving a similar plane that also lost a wing, killing the president of Texas Air Aces. The aerobatics company also employed the pilot involved in the latest crash. It was the third in five years involving T-34s that lost wings in flight. Conroe pilot Richard Gillenwaters, 51, and passenger Pietro Migliori of Venezuela were killed in the crash.


A ROBBERY TAKES FATAL TOLL ON CLERK

NY- A QUEENS GROCERY clerk who feared going to work because of previous robberies died, apparently of a heart attack, after his shop was held up by bandits, cops said yesterday. Tasawar Hameed, 46, was riding in a police cruiser helping cops search for the masked gunmen Tuesday night when he began complaining of chest pains, cops said. The cops pulled over and Hameed got out, only to collapse onto the sidewalk. He died at Mary Immaculate Hospital despite efforts by cops and paramedics to save him.


MORE CLUES SOUGHT IN SLAYING OF CLERK

FORT BELVOIR - Fairfax County police yesterday returned to the scene of a deadly robbery from earlier in the week to search for clues. Officers conducted a grid search to look for additional evidence in the slaying of a convenience store clerk. Sun Ku Kwon, 60, of Alexandria was stabbed to death Monday at a 7-Eleven near Fort Belvoir. Police have arrested a 14-year-old from Fort Belvoir and charged him with Kwon's slaying. Police said it will be up to prosecutors to decide if the boy will be tried as an adult.


Construction Worker Killed

IL- The Champaign County coroner is calling a construction site mishap that killed a Mattoon man an unfortunate accident. Neighbors say they heard calls for help and did everything they could to try to save the mans' life. Neighbor Robert Smith says he heard calls for help across the street from his home yesterday afternoon in the 400 Block of East Beardsley Avenue in Champaign. 52-year-old Carl Bartels of Mattoon was killed when he was trapped between an hydraulic lift arm and the base of a bobcat loader. Champaign County Coroner Duane Northrup says it appears that Bartels was trying to work on the lift at the time of the accident.


State docks worker killed, another injured in I-10 crash

MOBILE, Ala. A double-decker cattle truck that overturned on a sport utility vehicle near the Interstate 10 tunnel killed an Alabama State Port Authority cargo supervisor and injured the port's police chief. The crash occurred Thursday night. Names of the victimes were released yesterday. Robert Lampley, 48, died in the SUV. His passenger, Herbert McCants Jr., remained in fair condition at a Mobile hospital with injuries. McCants is the port's police chief. The truck driver, James Rachel, 41, wasn't injured.


Suspects sought in killing of cabdriver in Gwinnett County

Police are searching for two men suspected of robbing and killing a taxicab driver outside an apartment building. Gwinnett County police were called to the scene around 4:20 p.m. Monday by witnesses who reported hearing gunshots, said Gwinnett County police Cpl. Dan Huggins. Officers found the body of Carlos Lojan, 71, in the front seat of his minivan taxi, Huggins said.Witnesses told police they saw two young men running through the apartment complex moments after the shooting, Huggins said.


MAN KILLED AT JOB SITE IDENTIFIED

The construction worker killed Thursday on the South Side was identified yesterday as a 54-year-old Columbus man. Steven Cox died after being struck by the tailgate of a dump truck. Cox and his co-workers were attempting to empty dirt from a dump truck behind 1266 E. Livingston Ave. around 5 p.m. When the workers had trouble freeing the load, someone reportedly rammed the tailgate with a Bobcat.Witnesses told police Cox was looking into the rear of the dump truck and was struck in the head when the tailgate was knocked shut.


Three elementary teachers died in West Texas crash

DENVER CITY, Texas- Three elementary school teachers in this West Texas town were killed Friday when a tractor-trailer ran a stop sign, colliding with their school van, a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper said. "It's hard. The kids and our teachers are having a real hard time with this," Terry Deaton, the superintendent's secretary, told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal in Saturday editions. Marina Natividad, 37; Veronica Flores, 29; and Maria Rosario Garza, 47, were pronounced dead at the scene following the 7:48 a.m. accident at the intersection a few miles northeast of Denver City, DPS Cpl. John Gonzalez said.


Fatal Shooting

CA-Authorities booked a 16-year-old boy today for the death of a security guard during an exchange of gunfire in a parking lot at the Big Saver grocery store in Long Beach. Noe Fernandez, 39, of Los Angeles died about 10:30 last night in the 1300 block of West Willow Street, said Long Beach police Officer Israel Ramirez. It was unclear why he and his killer traded shots, Ramirez said. The suspect, whose name was withheld, was booked after going to Long Beach Memorial Hospital overnight for treatment of a gunshot wound.


Medical technician died when a boat taking her to a medevac mission went hard aground

ANCHORAGE, Alaska- A medical technician with the Sitka Volunteer Fire Department died when a boat taking her to a medevac mission went hard aground, Sitka police said Wednesday. Molly Ahlgren, a longtime fisheries professor at Sheldon Jackson College in Sitka, died in the mishap on Gavanski Island shortly after 7 p.m. Tuesday.


SD Construction Fatal

SAN DIEGO, CA- Authorities today released the name of a 29-year-old civil engineer killed by a dump truck sliding down a muddy hill at a La Jolla construction site. Jason Bodine of Corona was collecting soil samples at the bottom of a hill on a residential lot on Pearl Street when a truck headed uphill lost traction about 10:20 a.m. yesterday, San Diego police and county Medical Examiner's officials said. The vehicle slid down the hill and struck Bodine, who died at the scene, authorities said.


Family, community grieve for slain store owner

CA- Gopal and Kashmira Patel moved to the United States 17 years ago looking for a brighter future for their family. Tuesday, the day after a gunman shot and killed Gopal Patel during a robbery in their store, his wife couldn't even think about what lies ahead.


Concrete worker killed after being pulled under truck

Tacoma- A worker at a concrete company was killed early Tuesday after being pulled underneath the wheels of a semitrailer used to transport concrete girders. Kristopher Hedge, 26, of Tacoma, was an employee at Concrete Technology Corp., 1123 Port of Tacoma Road. Just after 4 a.m., Hedge and another Concrete Technology employee were looking at the rear steering cab of the semitrailer, which had pulled up next to the company's property to pick up a load, said Virginia Robinson, the company's human resources manager.



Ex-cop charged with manslaughter in shooting of New York City deli worker

NEW YORK- A former police officer was charged Monday with manslaughter in the shooting of a deli clerk last month despite his contention that the death was a tragic accident. An indictment accuses John Malik, 60, of recklessly firing a semiautomatic pistol at the victim while cashing a lottery ticket inside the deli the night of Oct. 18. Malik has told investigators that he was reaching for his pager when he accidentally dropped his holstered gun, which he was licensed to carry. As he fumbled to catch the weapon, he said, it fired and the bullet struck Manuel Chametla, an 18-year-old Mexican immigrant.



Charges filed in truck driver's death

TN- A truck driver killed Monday morning by a runaway utility trailer has been identified by Memphis police as William R. Pruitt, 49, of Bartlett. Pruitt was killed instantly as he was standing outside his rig on Distribution Drive, waiting for it to be loaded. Robert Webb Jr., 22, was driving a FedEx bob truck and towing a utility trailer when the trailer detached and crushed Pruitt.


Semi driver killed on freeway; he swerved to avoid pickup on icy I-94

IN- An Indiana truck driver died early Thursday in Allen Park when his semitrailer ran off I-94 at the Southfield Freeway and struck a bridge support pillar after colliding with a spinning pickup truck driven by a Shelby Township woman. The trucker's response to the spinning pickup may have saved the other driver from serious injury or death, according to Michigan State Police. "She spun several times, and it looks like he tried to avoid broadsiding her and instead he ended up killing himself," said Sgt. Matt Nutt, shift commander of the State Police post in Taylor. The truck driver apparently was driving safely, but the woman may have been speeding through the area -- a construction zone with a posted speed of 50 m.p.h., Nutt said. "I think he was abiding by the speed, but I think she might not have been. We're not sure," he said. The driver, who died at the scene of the 4:45 a.m. accident, was identified as Charles Nutt, 59, of Bremen, Ind. The truck was loaded with auto parts, police said.


Oil Worker Killed in Accident

Authorities have identified a Burke County man killed in a work-related oilfield accident. Authorities identified him as 44-year-old Daniel Schroeder of Battleview. Divide County Sheriff Lauren Throntveit says the incident happened Tuesday afternoon in northeast Divide County, between Crosby and Noonan. The sheriff says the victim was trying to get into a piece of loading equipment, when he became pinned between the machine and its bucket. An autopsy is being performed in Bismarck.


Inquirer worker killed in 3-car accident on I-76

PA- A Philadelphia man who worked as a newspaper handler at Philadelphia Newspapers Inc., which publishes The Inquirer and Daily News, died early yesterday morning in a three-car accident on the Schuylkill Expressway. Raymond McCabe, 41, of the city's Port Richmond section, was driving to work at the company's printing plant in Conshohocken about 4:45 a.m. when the accident occurred on the highway's westbound lanes in West Conshohocken.


Gas Well Worker Killed

An East Texas man was killed Saturday after an accident at a natural gas well site near Troup. It happened just before Midnight at a site off of CR 2163, just Northeast of Troup. Authorities say 31-year-old Carlos Campos, of Carthage, was working on a rig, drilling a natural gas well. Campos was about 75 feet up when his safety harness became caught in the rig's elevator. The man was pulled off a platform and fell to his death. It's being considered an accident. Authorities in Smith County say it's the second time this year a worker has been killed while working on a drilling rig.



Freight trains crash in S.C.; eight people killed, dozens taken to hospitals

GRANITEVILLE, S.C. — A freight train carrying chlorine gas struck a parked train early today, killing eight people and injuring at least 200 others, nearly all of them sickened by a toxic cloud that persisted over this small textile town at nightfall.

Aiken County Coroner Tim Carlton identified the dead on mill property as Willie Shealey, 43, of Graniteville; John Laird, 24, of North Augusta; Rusty Rushton, 41, of Warrenville; Allen Frazier, 58, of Ridge Spring; and Steven Bagby, 38, of Augusta.

Carlton says Joseph Stone of Quebec, Canada, was found dead inside the sleeper cab of his 18-wheeler near the plant. Aiken Senator Tom Moore tells us, "He was not an employee of Avondale. I think he was bringing a load of cloth to be dyed or finished at the Gregg Division. And apparently, well, he was in his sleeper and probably died in his sleep." Tony DeLoach, 56, died in his home on Main Street, near the site of the train wreck. The train engineer, Christopher Seeling, 28, of West Columbia died at a hospital. No one was on board the parked train.