CONSTRUCTION ACCIDENT KILLS MAN

JACKSON -- A Jackson man was killed in a construction accident Monday morning when he was pinned between a backhoe and the floor joist of a wooden deck, police reported.

David Wayne Cook, 37, of 1000 County Road 543, died almost immediately, said John Clifton, deputy coroner for Cape Girardeau County.

The accident occurred behind the home at 389 Grandview Drive off of state Highway 25. Cook, who operates a plumbing business, was using a Ditch Witch to excavate a hole for a septic tank, said Marvin Sides, police chief.

About 10 a.m., Cook was working alone as one employee was in the front yard while another had driven off on an errand, Clifton said.

The employee in the front yard heard the backhoe stop, and ran back to see what had happened, police said. Cook's head had been trapped between the deck's floor joist and the backhoe.

"He had been operating the backhoe when the bucket suddenly pushed into the ground and pinned him," Sides said.

Police and Jackson firefighters arrived at 10:02 a.m., but it was already too late.

The cause of Cook's death has not officially been determined, Clifton said. An autopsy will be performed.

Whether the death was from operator error or mechanical malfunction is still unknown, Clifton said.

"For some reason the entire tractor raised up and pinned him," Clifton said. "We may never know exactly what happened."

Clifton estimated the space under the deck where Cook was working was as deep as 6 feet in some places.

Most excavation accidents that result in fatalities are because of trenches caving in, according to the federal Occupational Health and Safety Administration.