19.04.2017

Crane operator electrocuted

A crane operator died yesterday after the boom of his crane touched an overhead power line on a wind farm in Vermont.

David Sprague, 59, was travelling the crane under a series of high-tension power lines at a wind farm construction site in Searsburg, Vermont late yesterday morning when the boom either touched the power lines or came close enough for the power to arc to the boom tip. He was working for Maine based contractor Reed & Reed, which has declined to comment on whether Sprague was an employee or sub-contractor.

The emergency services and Green Mountain Power arrived on the site promptly and cut the power, but Sprague was declared dead at the scene. An autopsy is due to be carried out by the state’s chief medical examiner.

The 15 turbine wind farm is being developed by Avangrid Renewables, which broke ground on the project in December.