A tragic incident occurred in Jackson, Mississippi, where a man lost his life on Monday due to hot asphalt pouring onto him while he was working on a dump truck.
A 41-year-old man was engaged in work on a hydraulic line beneath a truck in the capital of Mississippi when the tailgate unexpectedly opened, causing asphalt to fall on him, according to a statement from the Jackson Police Department shared on Facebook Monday.
At the scene of the accident, Jackson Police Chief Joseph Wade informed reporters that authorities received notification of the incident at approximately 10:30 a.m. on Monday.
Upon arrival, responders discovered the victim, a private contractor, “buried under hot asphalt.”
“It appeared to be some type of malfunction with his dump truck,” Wade said. “The vehicle that he was here to pick up asphalt with as he tried to fix the vehicle of mitigation issue with, the vehicle actually unloaded all this hot asphalt onto him.”
Wade reported that multiple people present attempted to assist the victim as he struggled to overcome his injuries, but they were simply too severe for him to endure.
Wade characterized the event as a “terrible circumstance,” extending his “thoughts and sympathies,” and expressing that his heart “is with the family.”
“I talked to some of his family here on scene. They said he was a good man, a hardworking man, just trying to make a living,” Wade said. “They were hurt. They were traumatized.”
Wade stated that the police department has carried out a death investigation, noting, “but it seems to be an accidental death at this moment,” while emphasizing that the department continues to examine the specifics to clarify what exactly occurred.