Flagman stumbled, fell before being run over: witnesses
Concord Paving on trial for alleged safety violations related to worker's death in 2009
CBC News
Posted: Feb 9, 2012 11:47 AM NT
Last Updated: Feb 9, 2012 6:39 PM NT
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There was dramatic testimony at the Concord Paving trial Thursday, as witnesses described seeing flagman Tom Connors stumble and fall, and the excavator run over him.
Witness Una Pennell, testifying in provincial court in St. John's, was in a car with her husband Herbert Pennell at the time of the accident. They had just come from playing golf at The Willows golf course off the Holyrood Access Road.
Pennell said they had been stopped at the worksite. She said she saw Connors step out into the road, trip and go down.
"I was saying, 'Get up, get up,'" she testified. "The excavator is moving."
Pennell said she saw the tracks of the machine go over his legs.
"I just put my head down and screamed," she said.
Herbert Pennell's testimony echoed much of what his wife saw.
"The machine was moving towards my car, and he was walking in front of it," he testified. "He tripped or fell. And in moments the machine was upon him. I knew he was under the machine. After that, I looked away."
While the Pennells testimony was similar, they were far apart when it came to gauging distances.
Una put Connors much closer to the excavator just before the accident than her husband did.
The distance is important, because the trial is trying to determine if there were any violations of safety regulations.
Concord Paving Limited of Carbonear is charged with six violations of the Occupational Health and Safety Act in relation to Connors' death.
The Crown wrapped up its case Thursday. The defence will begin presenting its case next week.
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