A tragic accident on the New Jersey Turnpike claimed the life of a trucker early Monday. Although the accident occurred on the Turnpike, the fatal tragedy was a New Jersey construction site accident. The construction site is part of the infrastructure upgrade along the Turnpike. The project involves a massive widening project designed to ease traffic on the Turnpike between exit 6 in Mansfield and Exit 9 in East Brunswick.

A 51-year-old truck driver was delivering five huge concrete barriers to be used on the northbound side of the Turnpike during the project. The concrete barriers are used as a highway divider during the construction project. Authorities say the trucker backed his truck next to a crane so the barriers could be offloaded.

The driver stepped out of his truck and began loosening the restraints holding the barriers. One of the concrete barriers, weighing more than a ton, reportedly fell off the flat bed just before 8:00 a.m. Monday. The concrete barrier crushed the worker. Authorities say the man was pronounced dead around 8:20 a.m. at the scene of the construction site accident.

The accident victim reportedly is from Delaware and worked for a Pennsylvania trucking company. A number of agencies are investigating the construction site accident. Troopers from the New Jersey State Police Construction unit, Crime Scene Investigation Unit and Troop C detectives started investigating the incident Monday morning. The site is blocked off from open lanes on the Turnpike; traffic was not significantly affected.

Federal safety investigators from OSHA have reportedly been notified of the accident. OSHA may also join the investigation.

Source: phillyBurbs.com, "UPDATE: State police identify worker killed on NJ Turnpike," 11 Jul 2011