Loved ones are remembering a police officer and a utility worker who were hit and killed Wednesday at a worksite in Waltham, Massachusetts.
Blue lights lit up the police department in Waltham, Massachusetts, in honor of Officer Paul Tracey, a 28-year veteran of the department, who was working a police detail at the time. Family members also mourned the death of 36-year-old Roderick Jackson, a National Grid worker from Cambridge. Two other National Grid workers were also injured.
Those who knew Tracey and Jackson were in shock over their deaths on Thursday.
"He was a great father, he had ambition, great ambition, and this person took it all away from him," said Jackson's friend, Joe Garcia.
Get Boston local news, weather forecasts, lifestyle and entertainment stories to your inbox. Sign up for NBC Boston’s newsletters.
Waltham Police Chief Kevin O'Connell said, “We’re here today in solidarity not only with my fallen officer but with National Grid workers too. We work hand in hand with those guys daily, we’re there to protect them when we’re on detail. Unfortunately, what happened yesterday, nobody saw coming.”
Police saluted outside the Medical Examiner's Office Wednesday night in downtown Boston after a long procession for the fallen officer that began at a hospital in Burlington. Police officers, fire fighters and EMTs from all over the area were there.
O'Connell on Wednesday remembered his officer Tracey as "a compassionate police officer that always looked out for the underdog. He was an amazing husband, loving father and a friend to all."
Tracey, who ran for Waltham City Council in 2019 and again in 2013, leaves behind a wife and two kids. His wife is also a police officer, a school resource officer at Waltham High School.
Thursday night, police took part in another procession as Tracey's remains made a stop outside the station where he served for decades.
Jackson's brother spoke Thursday after the court hearing for Peter Simon, the New Hampshire man charged in connection with the deadly crash.
"He meant everything to me, he meant everything to everybody," his brother, Manuel Asprilla-Hassan, said. "The city of Cambridge knows who he is. When everybody forgets about him, we will remember. This is a nightmare that I'm living in. I woke up -- what just happened? You get what I'm saying? I can't even explain this story to anybody."
"I just spoke to him before it happened," he added. "We were talking about going to the game, the Rose Bowl game. He was my everything."
A National Grid spokesperson said in a statement Wednesday that "at National Grid, safety is our first priority," adding, "Our thoughts are with the crew members, their families and loved ones."
