Worker rescued after boom truck hits power lines in Renton
RENTON, Wash. - Firefighters rescued a construction worker after the basket on the boom truck he was in struck some high-tension power lines in Renton.
Police and fire crews were called to the scene on the southbound off-ramp from I-405 to Talbot Road, just before 10:00 p.m. Tuesday, and by the time they were able to bring the worker down to safety, he had been stuck for over three hours.
Firefighters said the worker was taken to a local hospital for treatment of minor injuries, but he and the bucket he was working in never actually touched the power lines. However, they did get close enough to the lines to energize them and cause them to arc.
Puget Sound Energy said there are several high-voltage lines in that location so they worked to ground the lines before the rescue operation began.
Crews said the man is part of a State Department of Transportation crew working on a construction project on I-405.
Fire crews used a PA system to communicate with the worker as they tried to rescue him. He was about 130 feet above the roadway.
Both directions of I-405 were shut down at Talbot Rd. while crews rescued the worker, but that has since reopened, according to Washington State Patrol.
This is a developing story and will be updated as new information becomes available.
