BRIDGEWATER (KDKA) – Emergency crews were called to a bridge construction site when a crane struck a high-powered electrical line and shocked a worker Wednesday morning.

The construction site was especially dangerous due to the web of electrical lines above it.

The incident happened at 8:37 a.m. when a worker on a new bridge project near Bridgewater suffered massive electrical shock when the crane he was near hit high tension lines.

“There was contact made with the wire. Through the crane in some fashion, the individual has some burns,” Beaver County Commissioner Dennis Nichols said. “From my understanding, it looks like he was in the barge area close to that piece of structure that’s on the barge.”

According to investigators, the worker was breathing and responsive and was taken from the site to Heritage Health Medical Center before being flown to a Pittsburgh hospital.

“It was 23,000 volt line,” Nichols said.

All work on the bridge project ceased in the wake of the accident and OSHA is expected to begin an investigation as well.

“It’s certainly a very disheartening situation, tragic situation. We hope the best for his full recovery,” Nichols said.

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