Springfield, MO — March 24, 2025, A man is dead after a dump truck accident that occurred at around 11:00 A.M. off of 3545 W Farm Road 34.

An investigation is underway following a dump truck accident that left one person dead during the morning hours of March 24th. According to official reports, Larry Flett was working at the Springfield Noble Hill Sanitary Landfill and was operating a dump truck when for unknown reasons the truck overturned and caught fire.

When emergency personnel arrived on the scene they found that Flett had been fatally injured and he was pronounced deceased. At this time it is unclear what caused the vehicle to catch fire, and so far investigators are still piecing together all the details from the crash, however this remains an ongoing investigation, and additional information may be released by officials at a later date.

Commentary by Attorney Michael Grossman

When a dump truck overturns and catches fire on a worksite, especially one as controlled as a landfill, the question that has to be asked is whether this was truly unforeseeable—or whether someone failed to prevent a known risk. Trucks don’t just roll and ignite without something going seriously wrong, and when the operator doesn’t survive, the investigation needs to do the talking.

The first issue is what caused the truck to overturn in the first place. Was the ground uneven or improperly prepared for vehicle traffic? Was the truck overloaded or carrying material that shifted during operation? These are common causes of rollover incidents, and in a setting like a landfill, where terrain can be unstable, there should be protocols in place to reduce those risks. If they weren’t followed—or worse, weren’t in place—that points to deeper issues with site management or training.

Then there’s the fire. That’s not a guaranteed outcome in a rollover. It suggests either a mechanical failure, a fuel system vulnerability, or some kind of spark that shouldn't have been there. Investigators should be looking at whether the truck had any prior maintenance issues, if it was equipped with proper fire suppression equipment, and whether anything about the vehicle's design made it more prone to igniting in a crash. Those details aren’t just technical—they go directly to whether this death could have been prevented.

When the operator of a vehicle dies on the job, the investigation has to go beyond the moment of the crash and ask what the employer did to keep that person safe. Was the driver properly trained for the equipment? Was the truck inspected that day? Was the working area evaluated for hazards before operations began? Those questions aren’t theoretical—they’re central to whether the company met its legal duty of care.

It may be a while before the full story comes out, but what’s already clear is that this isn’t a situation where the cause can be left to speculation. Fires, rollovers, and fatalities in a controlled work zone should raise immediate red flags. And unless those flags are followed up with a real investigation, there’s a serious risk the same mistakes will be repeated.