Construction Worker Hit, Killed By Falling Concrete Wall At Newton Home
NEWTON (CBS) – A construction worker was killed Thursday morning when a concrete wall collapsed on him in Newton.
It happened around 8 a.m. in the back yard of a home under construction on Winchester Street.
The Middlesex District Attorney's office said the 55-year-old man was working in the foundation of the home when a wall collapsed, pinning him to the ground. His family identified the man who died as Russell Harron.
He died at the scene. It took about three hours for firefighters to remove his body.
"This is a tragedy, said Newton City Councilor Holly Ryan. "These are people trying to make a living working for these developers and they have to lose their life over it."
No one else was hurt.
"We've been watching everyday as the work has been going on. The pace has picked up in the last couple of months because the weather has been so good," said neighbor Ira Deshpande. "Construction workers come in everyday, a whole bunch of them happy doing their job, and now we have this tragedy on hand."
Newton Fire Chief Gino Lucchetti said it was a challenging call for firefighters.
"Very difficult, emotional, it's long, it's tedious," he said. "But your mind is on the (rescue) tactic at the time. It's after that we think about what we've been through."
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) will conduct an investigation into the death.
According to the Massachusetts Coalition for Occupational Safety and Health (MassCOSH), it was the 15th confirmed workplace injury death in 2021, and the sixth from construction-related work.