Auburn death update: Ronald Gary Taunton, 55 dies when dump truck runs over him

An employee of East Alabama Paving Company was killed Monday at an Auburn, Ala., work site when a dump truck accidentally ran over him, authorities said.

Ronald Gary Taunton, 55, of Columbus, was hit by the dump truck around 1:15 p.m. CST, Lee County Coroner Bill Harris said. Taunton was apparently directing equipment in the 2600 block of Lee Road 72 when the Lee County tri-axle truck backed over him, killing him instantly, the coroner added.

The death is being investigated as an accident.

Harris said Taunton was wearing a safety vest and the back-up alarm on the truck was working.

The road was closed to traffic for a number of hours while Auburn police investigated and the area was cleared, Harris said.

Taunton worked for East Alabama Paving Company of Opelika, Ala., for 20 years.

This story was originally published February 8, 2010 at 6:29 PM with the headline "Auburn death update: Ronald Gary Taunton, 55 dies when dump truck runs over him."