Man riding on back of garbage truck in Centre County killed after crash into overhanging tree

A man riding on the back of a garbage truck was killed this week when the driver backed into a tree in Centre County, state police at Rockview wrote in a crash report.

Nathan Kerstetter, 38, of Milesburg, was hanging off the back of the truck about noon Wednesday when the driver backed into a tree overhanging a driveway along the 200 block North Main Street in Port Matilda, police wrote.

Kerstetter died of injuries from the crash, police wrote. He was pronounced dead at the scene by Centre County Deputy Coroner J.D. Kubalak. The Centre County Coroner’s Office declined to immediately release additional information.

Port Matilda EMS and Port Matilda Fire Co. assisted. It was not immediately known if the Labor Department planned to conduct an investigation.

Police did not identify the company the men worked for, but a photo posted by television station WTAJ showed a Newman Hill garbage truck at the scene.

A woman who answered a call to the company declined comment.