A 71-year-old Stayton man was killed when he was struck by a logging truck Thursday near Highway 214.

The Marion County Sheriff's Office said a log truck driver was backing up an unloaded 2006 Kenworth log truck while Vernon Christensen was in the truck's blind spot.

Christensen was hit and killed by the truck. Investigators said he couldn't hear the backing truck because of noise from nearby logging equipment.

Christensen and the driver of the truck both worked for Freres Logging.

Deputies said Christensen had been an employee for more than 50 years.