SPRINGFIELD, Tenn. - The family of a long time Springfield resident killed on Saturday after he was crushed beneath a farm tractor in the woods behind his home said they are heartbroken.
Family members said 55-year-old Michael Bell was using the tractor to clear brush in the woods near his Clarity Road home when it somehow became stuck. While trying to free the tractor with a come-a-long device, it rolled backward and pinned Bell beneath it.
Officials believed Bell was trapped for nearly ten hours before being found by his younger sister, Betsy.
"The big wheel of the tractor had just rolled over him, (and) broke his neck. If I hadn't heard the tractor running in the woods he would have been there until the next day," Betsy said.
Bell was a retired mechanic. He had three children and five grandchildren.
His family said they had left him around 11 a.m. Saturday and arrived home later in the evening to find him missing. The 55-year-old wasn't found until just after 10 p.m.
"Thank God it was instantly. I hope he didn't suffer anymore," said his mother, Charlotte.
A memorial service for Michael Bell was scheduled for Friday in Beech Bluff, Tennessee. His family said they are still struggling to pay for funeral arrangements since the 55-year-old didn't have insurance.
