DPW worker hospitalized after being struck by vehicle on the job
The worker was pinned between a garbage truck and a car.
More Stories
A Parsippany-Troy Hills sanitation worker is recovering in the hospital after being struck by a vehicle while loading trash into a stopped garbage truck Tuesday.
Parsippany-Troy Hills police said the incident took place at 7:03 a.m. Officers received multiple 911 calls, along with an emergency radio transmission from a DPW garbage truck reporting the collision in the area of Vail Road and Arnold Drive.
In a statement, police said a preliminary investigation revealed that the 48-year-old male employee of the Parsippany Department of Public Works Recycling and Sanitation Division was loading trash into the back of a stopped garbage truck when a Nissan Altima driven by a 29-year-old man struck the rear of the truck.
“The victim was pinned between the vehicle and the garbage truck,” police said.
Crews from Par-Troy EMS and Saint Clare’s paramedics responded to the scene and transported the DPW worker to Morristown Medical Center for severe injuries to his legs. Parsippany-Troy Hills Mayor Pulkit Desai released a statement saying the employee underwent surgery and is now recovering.
“He has our full support, and we stand with his family in this difficult hour,” Desai said.
According to police, the driver of the Altima remained at the scene and is cooperating with the investigation.
The mayor said the incident highlights the importance of motorists being aware while driving.
“Let us be clear: sanitation work is honest, necessary and sometimes dangerous work,” Desai said. “The men and women who do it deserve not only our gratitude, but our vigilance on the road.”
He said the town will do everything it can to help support the injured worker. Meanwhile, friends of the employee have launched a GoFundMe campaign to help raise money to cover medical expenses as he recovers.
