JERSEY CITY, N.J., Nov. 3 (UPI) -- A man delivering drywall to a construction site in Jersey City was killed when a one-pound tape measure fell 50 stories and struck him.
The tape measure had become dislodged from a construction worker's belt, Carly Baldwin, a spokeswoman for Jersey City Public Safety said.
The victim, Gary Anderson of Somerdale, N.J., was an independent contractor for a New York trucking company, George Hildebrandt Inc. He was at the site, where two 50-story residential towers are under construction in downtown Jersey City, to make a delivery of National Gypsum drywall.
The tape measure bounced off construction equipment before hitting Anderson in the head, Baldwin said. Police said he was not wearing a hard hat at the time.
"Upon preliminary investigation, it appears to be a very tragic accident," Jersey City Public Safety Director James Shea said.
Work at the site was halted after the accident. Anderson was pronounced dead at Jersey City Medical Center at 10 a.m.
