1 dead in construction accident in Boston's Seaport

BOSTON - One person is dead after a construction accident in the Seaport early Thursday morning, according to Boston EMS. It happened in a private parking lot between Northern Avenue and Seaport Boulevard around 5:30 a.m.

"One individual was pronounced non-viable on scene. There was one additional patient transported by basic life support ambulance to an area hospital," an EMS spokesperson said in an email to WBZ-TV.

The victim has been identified as 38-year-old Jim Chaffee of Westfield. He was the driver of a truck hauling construction material.

He was apparently struck by large pieces of concrete used for street curbing that somehow fell off the truck. 

Jim Chaffee's father tells WBZ he had more than 25 years experience. "He was very conscientious of what he did," James Chaffee Sr. said. "A great family man. My best friend." 

Investigators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Suffolk County District Attorney Kevin Hayden's office are looking into what happened.

No other information is available at this point in the investigation. 

"Every bit of care that's going into making sure these buildings are safe for the eventual customers or employees, or folks who will be using the building later on when it's ready, that needs to apply to every step in the construction or demolition process," Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said Thursday.

"We'll be reaching out to all of the worker organizations and unions as well to ensure that we're taking every possible action. OSHA's investigating this incident. Once we have information we will take those insights and decide if we need to have more drastic action across the city."

This incident came a month after Suffolk Construction closed all of its Boston sites temporarily to review safety after accidents at two job locations in the city. Those accidents happened just weeks after a worker died during the demolition of the Government Center parking garage in Boston in March.