Heavy machinery accident claims life of former Hadar resident | News

A former Hadar resident has died in a heavy equipment accident that occurred Thursday in Madison County, Iowa.

The Madison County (Iowa) Sheriff’s Office said in a news release that it received a 911 call around 8 a.m. Thursday about an overturned excavator in a small stream. The reporting party said the operator became trapped in the submerged cabin.

Before officers arrived, a witness was able to free the employee and begin CPR. The operator was then flown to a hospital in Des Moines, where he later died.

The operator was identified as 34-year-old Nicholas Koeppe of Corning, Iowa. The sheriff’s office said a preliminary investigation determined Koeppe was alone when he attempted to drive an excavator over a bridge spanning the body of water on private property. The bridge collapsed and the excavator rolled into the water, trapping it beneath the surface.

Koeppe – a 2008 graduate of Pierce High School – was a deputy sheriff in Adams County, Iowa. At the time of the incident, he was off duty and working a part-time job.

Services are pending at Stonacek Funeral Chapel in Norfolk.