Kendall man killed in lawn tractor accident
Press release, Orleans County Undersheriff Steve Smith
KENDALL – A Kendall man is dead, apparently after being accidentally pinned underneath the lawn tractor he was working on.
The incident occurred at a private residence in the 16900 block of Roosevelt Highway (State Route 18) and was reported to Orleans County 9-1-1 at about 4:20 p.m. Kendall Fire Department first responders found Stephen C. Ergott, 62, pinned under the machine and already deceased.
Upon investigation it appeared that Ergott had used the forklift on a larger tractor to lift the lawn tractor and suspend it off the ground so he could do maintenance on the under-side. At some point the lawn tractor apparently slipped off the forklift and fell to the ground, pinning Ergott underneath.
The on-scene investigation was conducted by Deputy R.M. Flaherty, assisted by Deputy J.J. Cole, Sergeant D.W. Covis, Investigator D.E. Foeller Jr., and Chief Deputy T.L. Drennan. That investigation has since been joined by the Monroe County Medical Examiner’s Office in Rochester.
