A Kansas Department of Transportation employee was killed during a fatal work accident last week. The 39-year-old KDOT employee was killed when the mower he was operating overturned and trapped him underneath. On Thursday afternoon, the KDOT worker was mowing the side of Interstate 70 in Sherman County when the fatal accident occurred. This accident will mark the third fatal riding mower incident this summer in central Kansas. According to KDOT, the victim was operating equipment belonging to the Goodland subarea office. An investigation by the KDOT will continue to uncover what went wrong in this fatal accident.
Fatal mowing accidents are not uncommon, but experts say most are preventable. Key factors that play into a rollover mower fatality include the use a roll-bar. According to officials, the victim was wearing his seatbelt, but the roll-bar was not in use. Other factors that cause accidents include the incline of the area being mowed. Dangerous inclines have to be approached with extreme caution. Maximum angles are established on all riding mowers, and most are a 15-degree angle. OSHA has created a tool mowers can use to measure the angle or slope of a hill to encourage workers to operate riding mowers safely.
Have you lost someone you love during a work-related accident? If you believe this tragic accident was preventable and was caused by negligence, you may be entitled to financial compensation. Contact an expert work accident attorney at Meyerkord & Kurth, LLC, and take your first step towards financial recovery.