By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
A worker was airlifted to a Seattle trauma hospital after a Centralia construction site accident in which he was hit by a large metal beam this morning.
Riverside Fire Authority was called about 9 a.m. to the area near Johnson Road and Pioneer Way where an events center is being built.
Fire Chief Jim Walkowski said he didn’t know how or even where the object struck the man.
“The victim was already extricated from under the beam when we arrived,” Walkowski said.
He was conscious, but sustained “multi-system trauma,” according to Walkowski.
A helicopter landed at the nearby school football field to fly the middle-aged man to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, according to the fire department.
Several entities are working together under a public facilities district to build an events center near the sports fields complex adjacent to Fort Borst Park.
The incident was reported to the state Department of Labor and Industries for possible investigation, but further details were not readily available.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter