A man is in critical condition after a vehicle fell on him Wednesday night near Richmond Avenue in Waterbury, with police saying he had been working underneath the vehicle when it appeared to slip off a jack stand. He was transported to an area hospital following the incident, and investigators say the case remains active.
According to WTNH, the man was working on the vehicle when it fell on him in the area of Richmond Avenue. Waterbury police told the station that the victim was taken to an area hospital, and WTNH reported the story as still developing Wednesday night.
What Police Have Confirmed So Far
Waterbury police said the investigation remains active, per the same WTNH report, though officials have not released the man's name, his age, or an exact address for the incident. The precise mechanical cause of the fall has not been established beyond the observation that the vehicle appeared to come off a jack stand while the man worked beneath it.
No updates on the man's condition or the outcome of the investigation were available as of the initial report.
A Known Hazard for Home Mechanics
Vehicle-support failures like the one described in Waterbury are not unique to Connecticut. In San Antonio, Jesus Colin Lucio died after a jack supporting a vehicle he was working on in a driveway collapsed, according to KSAT, which reported that a preliminary account found the jack gave way and the vehicle landed on him. In that same report, an auto repair shop owner said he always uses a backup support, such as a jack stand or even a tire, to keep a vehicle from falling, and noted that every vehicle has a designated area underneath it where a jack should be placed.
A separate incident in East Limestone County, Alabama, left a man seriously injured after a vehicle fell off a jack stand and struck a utility pole, as reported by Rocket City Now. Officials said that man had been working underneath his vehicle when it slipped off the jack stand, rolled over him, and continued down the driveway before hitting the pole.
Federal regulators have also tracked this kind of hazard. Data cited in an NHTSA publication describes an agreement between the agency and the Consumer Product Safety Commission to collect information on injuries tied to motor vehicle jack failures, including incidents that do not involve a police-reported crash.
Back in Waterbury, no further details have emerged since Wednesday night's report, and police have not indicated when the investigation might conclude.
