City employee dies from injuries in paving accident

Tragedy struck the city of Bremerton as longtime public works department employee Dean Westcott, 58, died Thursday from injuries sustained in an industrial accident Wednesday morning.

“He was the finest man I ever knew in my life,” Westcott’s wife Bonnie Westcott, said Thursday morning.

Westcott was injured while working on a street paving project near 11th Street and Callow Avenue. City crews were preparing to pave in the area and the accident appears to have occurred during the backing of a city vehicle, according to a press release issued by the city Wednesday afternoon.

“He was a very, very nice man,” Public Works Director Phil Williams said. “He was very well-liked by his coworkers and everybody’s going to miss him.”

As one of the city’s senior street service specialists, Westcott was in the position to mentor many in the group of temporary seasonal employees, who worked for the streets division during the summer months, Williams said.

“It’s just a very sad day for us in public works and utilities and more so in the streets division,” Williams said. “They’re a high functioning, cohesive group and this is really a huge blow to them.”

Mayor Cary Bozeman said the city’s main concern is for the Westcott family and Westcott’s crew as they cope with this tragedy.

“We’re doing all we can to support them through this,” Bozeman said.

Westcott’s death is believed to be the first on-the-job fatality in the city’s history, Bozeman said.

“We’re a small city, so we’re a family,” he said. “We’re doing all we can to provide support at this time, especially to Westcott’s family and crew members.”

The investigation into exactly what happened Wednesday morning is ongoing, and no timetable has been set for its completion.

“We’re doing everything we can to find out what happened, so it can never happen again,” Bozeman said.

The Louis Dean Westcott Memorial Fund for the family has been set up at Connections Credit Union. To donate, call (360) 307-6400, or visit one of the branches located at: 10200 Silverdale Way NW in Silverdale; Given’s Community Center, 1026 Sidney Avenue, Room 145 in Port Orchard; or Gateway Center, 2525 6th Street, Suite E in Bremerton.

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