Accident claims doctor, 2 construction workers
Robert Beane, 41, Baldwinville
Robert Beane, a longtime construction worker killed in yesterday's scaffolding collapse, had a gruff exterior that masked a sensitive core, a close friend said last night.
Edward Page and Beane had lived together for five years when both men were single, and they became as close as brothers. Page chose him to be the best man in his wedding.
''I wouldn't have traded him for anything in the world," Page said.
Beane's mother, Ida, was too distraught to talk at length last night. ''He was a good son," she said.
Beane's sister-in-law, Sandy Ryder, said Beane, 41, grew up in Baldwinville, a part of Templeton, in central Massachusetts and attended Narragansett Regional High School there. He attended Northeastern University for a time, she said.
He never married or had children, Ryder said.
''We're all very much in shock," she said. ''It's a very tragic accident."
Page said Beane was a sports fanatic who was loyal to friends and watering holes alike.
''He used to go to a little pub in town, the Thirsty Turtle," Page recalled of the Baldwinville haunt. ''He was like their governor."
Mary Chipman, whose son grew up with Beane, said she has known Beane since he was a small child.
''He and my son have been buddies ever since they were little kids in the first grade," she said. ''They used to come to my house and watch all the ball games."
SUZANNE SMALLEY 