Speed cited in crash that killed Stanislaus County worker

The California Highway Patrol concluded the driver of a truck was mostly at fault in the roadway accident that killed a Stanislaus County Public Works employee in June.

Russell Scott Atchinson, a county surveying technician, was checking survey markers on Claribel Road when he was struck by an eastbound pickup driven by John Masellis, 66, of Hughson. The 3:30 p.m. accident occurred June 23 on a canal crossing west of the Oakdale-Waterford Highway.

The CHP investigation found that Masellis was driving the GMC Sierra pickup at an unsafe speed for conditions and was not able to stop for a danger in the roadway. So far, the CHP has not recommended charges against the Hughson man.

Atchinson, 58, was making sure that survey markers were properly installed after a contractor had repaved the county road. The technician had exposed the monument well on the westbound lane and removed dirt from a well in the eastbound lane, the report says.

A CHP officer who responded to the accident noted there were no cones on the road west of the collision scene to alert traffic of roadwork. That factor contributed to the accident, the report says. There were three cones on the north and south shoulders of Claribel, east of the collision scene.

Additional cones, a warning sign and reflector vest in the county worker’s truck were not in use, the report says.

CHP Officer Eric Parsons said he didn’t know enough about county policies to comment on whether proper safety precautions had been taken. “(CHP officers) may not put out cones if we stop to quickly remove a piece of debris from the road,” Parsons said. “If we are there for a period of time then we are putting out flares and warnings.”

County Public Works Director Matt Machado disagreed with that section of the report. He said he believes Atchinson had placed cones in the eastbound lane, west of the collision site, to warn motorists but the cones were struck by the pickup and scattered.

Machado said a picture taken of the cones, east of the collision scene, shows one was on its side. A Public Works employee getting ready for road work has no reason to place cones on both sides of the road, Machado said.

Atchinson was wearing bright clothes and a hard hat and should have been visible to motorists, the director said. “I would say Scotty had cones in the proper place,” Machado said. “He was wearing the proper clothing. He had protected himself and the public the best that he could.”

Masellis was driving at an undetermined speed. He told the CHP that he saw something on the road but did not realize it was a person in time to avoid the accident. Although he applied the brakes, it was too late for Masellis or Atchinson to take evasive action. Atchinson died at the scene.

Masellis did not return phone messages from The Modesto Bee.

The California Occupational Health and Safety Administration is investigating the work-related fatality and is expected to release findings within two or three months. Stanislaus County’s risk management division also is conducting an investigation.

This story was originally published September 15, 2016 at 4:58 PM with the headline "Speed cited in crash that killed Stanislaus County worker."