Wayne County Coroner Edward Howell ruled that the driver of the dump truck at the Wayco, Inc. Quarry and Asphalt Plant which struck and killed another man on June 19 had an acute, sudden heart attack at the steering wheel.
According to the coroner’s report, the incident happened at 11:32 a.m. at the quarry, located at 1500 Purdytown Turnpike (Route 590), in Palmyra Township.
Howell and Chief Deputy Coroner Mark M. James responded to the scene. The truck driver, Brian G. Edwards, 51, of Honesdale, was pronounced dead at 12:52 p.m. by Coroner Howell. The driver was already in an ambulance when the coroner arrived. The autopsy, performed the next day, revealed that Edwards suffered an acute sudden cardiac death, according to Howell.
Three minutes later, Howell pronounced the man who was struck by the truck, James Martzen, 72, of Waymart, deceased. His body was located in the driveway into the quarry. Martzen received blunt force injuries from being hit by the truck, resulting in his death, the coroner said.
Howell stated prior to the autopsy that it was suspected that Edwards had an “acute medical event” which left Edwards unconscious as he was driving the dump truck out of the quarry. As the report states, this resulted in the dump truck rolling backward, downhill into the driveway of the quarry where Martzen was standing.
Edwards and Martzen were employed by two different privately-owned trucking companies, Howell noted.
Peter Becker has worked at the Tri-County Independent or its predecessor publications since 1994. Reach him at [email protected] or 570-253-3055 ext. 1588.
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