Westerlo boy killed in Berne bulldozer accident 

HILLTOWNS — An 8-year-old Westerlo boy was killed Sunday morning, May 17, in an accident involving a bulldozer and an ATV in Berne, Patrol Station Commander J.T. Campbell of the Albany County Sheriff’s Office told The Enterprise.

The man operating the bulldozer at 1353 Thatcher Park Road was in the boy’s family, said Campbell, who did not release names.

The operator had gone missing Sunday morning but was located and brought to a “safe place,” Campbell said; he has not been charged.

Campbell said that a 5-year-old family member witnessed the accident and is now with family.

“This is all still under investigation,” Campbell explained. “We’re not releasing much right now.”

The 8-year-old was a second-grader at Berne-Knox-Westerlo, Superintendent Timothy Mundell wrote in a release on Monday. He said that the district’s crisis team and grief counselors are available for anyone who needs them, despite the coronavirus closure of school. ​

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More Hilltowns News

  • Berne Councilwoman Melanie laCour voiced her concerns at the board’s May meeting about the fact that the town’s ambulance expense was left out of the 2025 budget, making it unclear how the town will pay for a $225,000 expense at the end of the year when all revenue is already attached to other expenses and there’s little left in savings. 

  • The Berne-Knox-Westerlo Board of Education unanimously adopted Superintendent Bonnie Kane’s $24.7 million budget for the 2025-26 school year, which will go to a public vote on May 20. 

  • Albany County, in one of its first acts as owner of the property, has fixed up the road leading up to Switzkill Farm as it prepares for more improvements down the line. 

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