Construction Worker Killed by Giant Log

Police spent much of Wednesday night carrying out an investigation in the Rock Spring neighborhood where a construction worker died when he was crushed by a giant log.

Police responded to the 4800 block of Rock Spring Road just before 6:00 p.m. for reports of an accident at a residential construction site. Subcontractors at the site had been removing large trees from the property and were using a backhoe to load huge sections of the trees onto a flatbed truck.

The 30-year-old victim had been trying to secure the tree sections onto the truck when a log weighing in excess of a ton rolled off the flatbed and crushed him. Police say the two other workers at the site did not see the accident, but heard a large noise and rushed to assist the victim. The other workers managed to remove the log, but the victim is believed to have died instantly. Police and medics pronounced the man dead upon arriving at the scene.

The victim’s two co-workers remained on scene and provided statements to police. The site manager, owner of the trucking company and an OSHA representative all responded to the scene as well. The victim’s family has been notified.

“There was no reason to believe there was any suspicious activity, it just appears to be an absolutely tragic incident,” said Arlington County Police Department spokesman Dustin Sternbeck.