The wife of a Butler County man who was killed in an August 2022 collision involving two garbage trucks in Mars has filed a wrongful death suit against Vogel Disposal Services and one of the company’s drivers.

Rena Bortmes, of Chicora, filed the suit in Butler County Common Pleas Court on behalf of herself and the estate of her late husband, David Bortmes, against Vogel and Mark Seybert, of Slippery Rock, who was driving the Vogel garbage truck that was involved in the crash with the Waste Management truck David Bortmes was driving, according to the lawsuit.

On Aug. 26, 2022, at 4:28 a.m., Bortmes, 53, was driving a 2019 Mack refuse truck north on Mars Valencia Road around the same time Seybert had just made a trash pickup at 441 Mars Valencia Road in a 2015 Mack refuse truck.

The lawsuit, filed last week, claims Seybert drove the truck perpendicular to and across both lanes without using hazard lights or another means of warning other vehicles. There were no streetlights on the road, according to the lawsuit.

Bortmes approached Seybert’s truck, which was blocking the road, and tried to avoid a collision by turning right into the lot Seybert had just pulled out of but instead hit Seybert’s truck and a building, the lawsuit asserts.

Bortmes suffered catastrophic injuries from being pinned in the truck by a collapsed dashboard and steering wheel. He remained conscious and was talking to emergency responders at the scene.

However, he suffered a heart attack when rescuers began to extract him from the truck, and he was later pronounced dead at UPMC Passavant Hospital in Cranberry Township. The Bortmeses have two children.

The lawsuit includes wrongful death and survival claims against Vogel Disposal Services and Seybert, and seeks damages in excess of $35,000.

The lawsuit alleges that Vogel and Seybert failed to ensure the truck could be moved safely and failed to abide by traffic laws and that Seybert didn’t use hazard lights or other warnings to alert drivers that the truck was blocking both lanes.

In addition, the lawsuit seeks damages for Bortmes’ death; pain and suffering before he died; loss of earnings, employment benefits, retirement and Social Security income; and loss of enjoyment of life.

Police did not file charges or traffic citations against Seybert, who could not be reached for comment Monday. A Vogel representative didn’t return a message seeking comment Monday.