NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – An East Nashville family told News 2 a teenage boy has died after an incident involving a forklift Sunday.
Yellow police tape and MNPD vans surrounded the scene at the intersection of 6th and Davidson Street Sunday evening. According to the Metro police, 15-year-old Jaden Dalton, a student at Maplewood High School, was playing with friends behind Equipment Finders Inc.
Officers said somehow Jayden was able to start the forklift and began joyriding. A witness told Metro police Jaden was doing donuts on the forklift when it overturned.
“The kids, I guess they had been riding around with the forklifts playing or whatever, and my nephew he was running around doing doughnuts and so [happened] the machine fell on him when he was trying to actually jump out of the machine, so. And it actually crushed him, it killed him,” relative Latonya Dalton said.
As the family works to piece together what exactly happened Sunday evening, Dalton said children in the area are in need of more ways to fill their time.
“It’s hard out here on these streets, these kids, they don’t have nothing else better to do. As you can see, they’ll find something to do if they don’t have nothing to do out here,” Dalton said.
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Relatives told News 2 Jaden was held in the hearts of many and this accident has forever changed their family.
“He’s very loved by all, everybody loves him. He can sometimes get on your nerves, but he’s loved by all,” Dalton said.
Metro police have classified Jaden’s death as accidental.
“Our thoughts are with the family and friends of Jaden Dalton, a 9th-grade student at Maplewood High who tragically lost his life in an accident yesterday. Our support team has been working with the school to provide grief counseling as they mourn the loss of their classmate,” said Metro Nashville Public Schools in a statement regarding Jaden’s death.
Equipment Finders, Inc. told News 2, “We are awaiting the result of the police investigation, until then we have no comment.”
The family has set up a gofundme page for Jaden.
