Dexter man dies in farming accident

EDITOR'S NOTE: This story has been corrected to change Dowdy's age from 60 to 61.

DEXTER, Mo. -- A 61-year-old Stoddard County man died in a farming accident Wednesday morning off County Road 65 north of Route H, near Pyletown.

David Dowdy was reportedly working around 8:30 a.m. at a grain bin near his farm where he had corn stored. He suffocated after falling into the grain while trying to loosen a layer of crusted corn.

Emergency responders, including Stoddard County Ambulance personnel, the Dudley Fire Department, the Dexter Fire Department and their extrication team, the Missouri State Highway Patrol, the Stoddard County Sheriff's Department and a medical helicopter all reported to the scene.

According to the sheriff's department, neighbors reached the area within moments of the accident and were in the process of cutting an opening in the bin when fire department personnel arrived and took over the task. Dowdy died before he could be rescued from the bin.

Dowdy served more than 20 years on the University of Missouri Extension Council, with several terms as a Missouri Farmers Association-appointed representative. He worked with Stoddard County 4-H organizations and volunteered for more than 20 years as livestock committee chairman for the Stoddard County Fair.

Dowdy leaves a wife, Pam, and two children.