Fundraiser Launched To Help Construction Worker Critically Injured In East Lyme Accident

EAST LYME, CT — The community is raising money to help a man who was critically injured while working on a construction job last week.

A newly launched GoFundMe campaign, “Help Support Darnell Parker,” seeks to raise $12,000. As of Tuesday afternoon, it had raised $625.

Campaign organizer Brittany Berube said Parker suffered “devastating” injuries while working on a construction site.

The accident happened shortly after 10 a.m. on Aug. 20 in the vicinity of New Frontage Road and I-95 southbound, near the exit 74 offramp.

East Lyme Fire Chief William Bundy said the 54-year-old worker got trapped in concrete barriers and had to be extricated. According to Bundy, the victim was initially taken to Lawrence + Memorial Hospital, then transferred to Yale New Haven Hospital.

According to the campaign, doctors at Lawrence + Memorial Hospital had to perform emergency surgery to control internal bleeding.

Yale hospital officials said Parker remains listed in critical condition as of Tuesday.

“Right now, his family and friends are taking things one moment at a time,” the campaign states. “The road ahead is uncertain, but we know it may be a long and difficult one.”

Money raised will go toward expenses related to Parker’s hospitalization and recovery, including medical expenses, travel, lost income, rehabilitation, and other needs that may arise, according to the campaign.

“He is so much more than what happened to him,” the campaign states. “He is a friend, a loved one, and someone who means the world to the people who know him. Seeing someone you care about fighting for their life is something no family or group of friends is ever prepared for.”

Eva Zymaris, a spokesperson for the Connecticut Department of Transportation, said last week the victim is a private construction worker, not a state employee. The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the accident.

Visit the GoFundMe campaign HERE.

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Construction Worker Critically Injured In East Lyme Highway Accident