Sadly deaths that occur while an individual is working are all too common in the Pittsburgh area. While all of these deaths due to work accidents are of course tragic, there is something particularly sad about a person whose job it is to protect the lives of Pittsburgh residents losing his or her own while performing that job. As most reading this are probably aware, this recently happened in Beaver County.

According to state police the 47-year-old trooper was in his patrol car driving on Black Hawk Road near its intersection with Route 168 when the collision happened. As he drove along a tractor-trailer reportedly failed to stop at a stop sign posted at the intersection and plowed into the patrol car.

Immediately following the crash the trooper was transported to an area hospital. Sadly, there he was determined to be dead. In addition to a wife, the man left behind two children.

It is not clear what caused the truck to go through the stop sign. As of yet, no criminal charges have been filed against the driver of the tractor-trailer. Whether they will be in the future remains to be seen.

It is also not clear if a wrongful death lawsuit will be filed against the trucker. Such a filing is fairly common in a situation where the person who unexpectedly dies in an accident like this one leaves behind a family that he or she helped to support. While there is little that can be done to fill the emotional hole that is left behind when someone is taken too soon, a successful wrongful death lawsuit could help to fill the financial one.

Source: Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, "State trooper dies in Beaver County crash," Moriah Balingit and Torsten Ove, Oct. 4, 2012