Decatur man walks away from a bulldozer rollover accident

Photo by Mike Eckels A bulldozer rests upside down against a tree after rolling down a steep embankment Aug. 13, about one mile north of Rothwell Road in Decatur. Charles Hudson was pushing a rock down the hill when the soil underneath the machine gave way causing Hudson and his eight-ton Caterpillar to roll two and one-half times.
Photo by Mike Eckels A bulldozer rests upside down against a tree after rolling down a steep embankment Aug. 13, about one mile north of Rothwell Road in Decatur. Charles Hudson was pushing a rock down the hill when the soil underneath the machine gave way causing Hudson and his eight-ton Caterpillar to roll two and one-half times.

DECATUR -- A Decatur man counts himself lucky to be alive after the bulldozer he was operating hit a patch of loose rocks and rolled into a ravine on Aug. 11.

The accident occurred four miles southwest of Decatur, just off of Rothwell Road. The Caterpillar D3 was driven by Charles Hudson of Decatur.

Hudson was working on an access road behind his house and had just pushed a load of rock down the hillside. He was in the process of moving a second load when the edge of the hillside gave way, causing the eight-ton bulldozer to roll sideways down the embankment with Hudson on it.

The Caterpillar rolled two and one-half times before coming to rest against a large tree about 35 feet from the top of the hillside. Several rocks and trees along the path of the dozer slowed the descent, enabling Hudson to move with the machine and avoid getting pinned under it.

"I just held on to the seat when it began rolling," Hudson said. "About the time the seat came loose, the dozer rolled against the tree. I lost my grip and dropped on the top of the cab just as a big rock hit and pinned my leg against the controls."

With the bulldozer upside down, oil, gas and hydraulic fluid began pouring out of the engine, causing it to smoke. Fearing a fire, Hudson reached up and was able to reach the key and shut off the engine.

Hudson escaped with only a black eye, bruises on his arms and legs, and two bone chips from his number six vertebrae.

"I called 911 from my cell phone and 30 minutes later the Decatur fire department showed up," Hudson said. "They moved the rock and freed my leg."

Hudson is fortunate that he walked away from his accident. Most rollover accidents involving heavy equipment such as bulldozers, excavators and graders end with loss of life.

Hudson plans on righting the bulldozer and, using a winch to move it to the top of the hill, continuing his road project.

General News on 08/20/2014