Man crushed by lorry ‘was helping it reverse’
A MAN crushed to death by a lorry reversing into a loading boy at a city centre skyscraper was a worker guiding the vehicle in, the M.E.N. understands.
The tragic incident unfolded on New York Street shortly after 9am on Tuesday.
Police and ambulance crews were called to reports of a collision between a lorry and a man.
The man was treated at the scene before being rushed to hospital, but sadly died from his injuries.
The M.E.N. understands the man was acting as a banksman as the lorry reversed into a loading bay at City Tower.
Banksmen are operatives trained to direct vehicle movements on or around a site and are sometimes called traffic marshals. City Tower is a 30-storey office building with a number of retailers on the ground the floor.
It is understood the lorry was making a delivery to one of the businesses when the incident occurred.
Greater Manchester Police and the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) are investigating.
A 48-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of causing death by careless driving in the wake of the incident. He has later released under investigation.
A spokesman for the HSE said the regulator has been made aware of the incident and is ‘making inquiries in liaison with Greater Manchester Police.’
GMP’s city centre team tweeted: “Very tragic. Well done to the officers who dealt with this difficult incident.”
A spokesman for City Tower said: “We are extremely saddened to hear of the incident.
“Our thoughts are with the family and friends of the victim and anyone else affected by this tragic event.”
GMP said in a statement: “A man has died following a collision in Manchester city centre.
“Shortly after 9.20am on Tuesday, February 19, police were called to reports of a collision between a truck and a pedestrian on New York Street in Manchester city centre.
“Emergency services attended and the pedestrian, a man believed to be in his 50, was taken to hospital where he sadly died from his injuries. Inquiries are ongoing.”