Aroostook County Trucker Dies after a Fall on Massachusetts Interstate

Massachusetts State Police have released the name of a northern Maine truck driver who died Tuesday evening after he fell and struck his head while adjusting his load on a breakdown lane on Interstate 495. Police say the man is Wayne Barnes, 43, of Dyer Brook. 

A Help Van driver had stopped to assist Barnes in Haverhill on the Andover side of the highway. The Aroostook County man's load of paver bricks had shifted on his Peterbilt rig and Barnes was attempting to fix the problem. Massachusetts State Police Trooper Paul Sullivan says the same Help Van driver found Barnes severely injured a short time later on the north side of the highway. The man called 9-1-1 at 6:15 pm and performed CPR until Haverhill EMS arrived. Barnes was transported to Lawrence General Hospital where he was pronounced deceased.

Preliminary investigation by Trooper Daniel Schumaker indicates that Barnes fell while making a second adjustment to the load and struck his head.

The incident remains under investigation by the Massachusetts State Police Crime Scene Services and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement sections, detectives assigned to the Essex District Attorney’s Office and the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration.