A worker at the Hanover Inn construction site died on March 13 after suffering a serious head injury caused by a construction accident, according to Hanover Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone.
Dana Lowe, a 53-year-old resident of Morrisville, Vt. was assisting in the erection of steel beams from a scissor lift when a crane ball inadvertently knocked over the aerial lift on which he was standing, according to Giaccone.
"He fell about 15 feet and his head struck the concrete floor and some steel beams," he said.
Lowe was transported to Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in a "semi-unconscious" state, Giaccone said.
He died 12 to 15 hours after arriving at DHMC. The New Hampshire Medical Examiner's Office listed the cause of death as "blunt force trauma to the head," according to a Hanover Police press release.
Lowe was hired as a subcontractor by CSE Inc. of Williston, Vt. to work on the Hanover Inn renovations.
Engelberth Construction of Colchester, Vt. is the general contractor working on the Inn, and the crane is owned and operated by Able Crane Service of Merrimack, N.H., according to the press release.
Inspectors from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are conducting an investigation to determine if any workplace safety standards were violated, according to Giaccone. Investigations are "normal procedure" after industrial accidents and could take up to a year, he said.
No other incidents have occurred since the start of the Hanover Inn renovations, and Hanover Police have deferred further investigation of the incident to the OSHA, according to Giaccone.
"We always work within the rules of safety and awareness," CSE Inc. owner Bill Michaud said. "We never want to see anything like this ever happen."
CSE Inc. has never experienced an accident "of this nature," according to Michaud.
Lowe worked in construction for 15 years and was employed by CSE Inc. for several years on and off, according to his brother, Michael Lowe. Michael Lowe said Dana Lowe loved his occupation and was a "hard-working and dedicated employee," in addition to a reliable and thoughtful friend.
Lowe was a "fun-loving guy" and "great to joke around with," Woody Woodmansee, who knew Lowe since they were in kindergarten, said.
He also mentored his co-workers in steel working, according to Adam Thomann, who was also subcontracted by CSE Inc. to work on the Inn construction site.
"It's tragic what happened, but he taught me a lot and gave me enough to know how to do the trade and continue on," he said.
Over 350 people attended Lowe's wake, according to his brother.
The last time a construction worker died operating on a site in the Hanover area was during the summer of 2011, according to Giaccone. In that incident, a worker operating a backhoe on the construction site of the newly built Class of 1978 Life Sciences Center suffered a fatal heart attack.
The most recent incident involving material errors occurred a "couple of years ago," he said. At that time, pipes collapsed onto a worker who was moving metal piping in a trailer at a College construction site.
Construction was suspended to provide the crew with grievance counseling, and workers resumed construction the Monday following the accident, Michaud said.
The Inn has been closed since December for expansion and renovation, including the addition of more guest rooms and the implementation of a new state-of-the-art ballroom and conference center. The Inn is projected to reopen on June 1, in time for Commencement.
