Worker injured when pinned by forklift at airport site in serious condition

A 25-year-old man was seriously hurt at the construction site for the new parking garage at Wichita Mid-Continent Airport when a forklift shifted and pinned him, a company official said Tuesday.

The construction accident was reported at 7:55 a.m. Tuesday, a Sedgwick County dispatch supervisor said. A forklift holding a girder beam form tipped forward about 2 feet and pinned the worker, said Doug Westervelt, safety director for Crossland Construction, the general contractor for the parking garage.

The form, into which concrete is poured once it is set in place, is 48 feet long and weighs about 3 tons, Westervelt said.

The airport fire department and police officers arrived at the scene of the accident a few minutes after 8 a.m., said Valerie Wise, a spokeswoman for the Wichita Airport Authority. By the time emergency responders arrived at the parking garage, the worker had been freed from the girder beam form.

The victim was alert and responsive when he was transported via ambulance to Via Christi Hospital St. Francis, the emergency dispatcher said. He was in serious condition on Tuesday afternoon, a Via Christi spokeswoman said.

“We are thoroughly investigating the accident,” Westervelt said. “Our concern is for the employee and his family.”

Officials from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration have arrived at the airport to review the incident.

Westervelt said it’s “very fortunate” the employee’s injuries weren’t more severe.

This story was originally published October 28, 2014 at 12:13 PM with the headline "Worker injured when pinned by forklift at airport site in serious condition."