ANDERSON, Ind. — Tobi Jones watched nervously as her 16-year-old son, Dallas, navigated city streets in the family car.
This wasn’t the way his driving lessons were meant to go.
The task of teaching Dallas to drive, she said, belonged to his father, Dale.
“Stop sign, honey,” Jones blurted out, tensing in the passenger seat of the car.
Jones’ husband, Dale, was struck and killed by a car while cleaning up debris at Scatterfield and Mounds roads on Dec. 6, 2009.
A city street department worker, it was Dale’s job to clear the roadway.
Tobi Jones, a school board member, learned of her husband’s fatal accident soon after, as did much of Anderson.
News that the husband of a school board member had died spread quickly throughout town, and now, four months later, Jones wants to use her tragedy to help others who have lost loved ones on the job.
On April 28, Jones will host a memorial picnic and ceremony at the Anderson Town Center in downtown Anderson.
Jones said she hopes to honor those who have died while at work, choosing to host the picnic on National Worker’s Memorial Day.
The story of her husband’s death made headlines, she said, just like news of a man who fell into a grain silo in Lapel in 2009.
Jim Leach, 50, was pulled from the Lapel grain silo after falling into the container while trying to clear an auger.
Deaths like those of Dale Jones and Jim Leach are not so uncommon.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported 5,071 fatal work injuries in 2008. The number had declined significantly from prior years.
Although firefighters and police often get a lot of attention for their dangerous work, Jones said, industrial and road workers are often overlooked.
“Statistically, more guys lose their lives on the streets than other professions,” Jones said.
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data suggests that the most dangerous job in the nation belongs to fishermen. Airline pilots and loggers are close behind.
Those who have lost their lives at work will be honored at the picnic with balloons, music and speakers, she said.
Jones said she’d like others who have lost loved ones at work to contact her at (765) 208-5861.
Organizing the memorial, she said, helps to heal the wounds of losing a husband.
“It gives me a way to direct it to where I feel like I can be productive. I’m not one to sit at home and accept whatever happens. I’m more one to get out and see what we can do to make it better.”
Most dangerous jobs
A CareerBuilder report based on statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found that fishermen and airline pilots have the most dangerous jobs in the world.
* Fishermen
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 141.7
Average salary: $19,104
* Aircraft pilots and flight engineers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 87.8
Average salary: $129,250
* Logging workers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 82.1
Average salary: $22,320
* Iron and steel workers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 61.0
Average salary: $39,168
*Garbage collectors
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 41.8
Average salary: $23,770
* Farmers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 37.1
Average salary: $15,603
* Electrical power-line workers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 34.9
Average salary: $45,331
* Roofers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 33.9
Average salary: $28,474
* Truck drivers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 27.1
Average salary: $30,931 (for heavy or tractor-trailer drivers)
* Agricultural workers
Fatality rate (per 100,000 workers): 21.7
Average salary: $24,140
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics/CareerBuilder report 2006 (last reported year)
Work-related deaths
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics recorded a significant decline in work fatalities in 2008. The 5,071 fatal work injuries represented the lowest number of work-related deaths since 1992.
Fatal work injuries
2008: 5,071
2007: 5657
2006: 5,840
2005: 5,734
2004: 5,764
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Contact Brandi Watters: 640-4847, brandi.watters@heraldbulletin.com
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Widowed school board member to honor husband, workers
Tobi Jones to host memorial picnic
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