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A university grounds keeper was released from the hospital without serious injury after the lawn mower he was driving slid down a hill and tipped on its side into Clocktower Drive Monday.
Bobby McBride was mowing on a hill that separates Clocktower and Lincoln Drive near Pulliam Hall just after 8:30 a.m. when he lost control of the tractor, said Lt. Harold Tucker of the University Police.
Carbondale firefighters removed a piece of the tractor’s canopy to rescue McBride. He was taken to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale as a precaution, Tucker said.
Leonard Smith, foreman of the morning grounds crew, said McBride lost control because he was mowing on a hill too steep for tractors. The machine McBride used cannot be driven on hills with steeper inclines, he said.
Yet McBride was working in an area that has seen many landscape changes within the last two months.
Smith said grounds keepers were unable to mow the hill in the past because it used to be covered with trees that are gone now because of the strong-winded storm on May 8, he said.
David Tippy, assistant superintendent of the grounds, said McBride was a competent worker who may not have been familiar with mowing near that hill after the storm.
“What really transpired (Monday) is a case of how much our campus has changed since the storm,” Tippy said. “Sometimes you get yourself in a situation and its too late.”
McBride’s tractor rested nearly seven feet below where contracted construction crews had removed a tree stump and filled-in the hole with dirt.
Tippy said grounds keepers attend safety meetings once a month. He said the last two meetings focused more on how to safely clean up storm debris and less about what mowers should keep in mind after an area is clear of debris.
Tippy said grounds keepers are encouraged to alert their supervisors of potential hazards.
