By Sharyn L. Decker
Lewis County Sirens news reporter
A Winlock teenager working in the woods with his father and a small crew was killed this morning when he was crushed by a piece of logging equipment south of Boistfort.
Aid and deputies were called about 11:42 a.m. to the scene, about 14 miles off Pe Ell McDonald Road, on property owned by Green Diamond Resource Co.
The sheriff’s office said the 18-year-old was setting chokers for a logging operation when a carriage was accidentally lowered onto him, killing him instantly.
“When Fire District 13 showed up, there was nothing we could do,” Lewis County Fire District 13 Assistant Chief Rick Eades said.
Eades described the carriage as a metal piece probably six feet long and not very wide that travels along a cable to assist in retrieving logs. He estimated it weighed two tons.
The terrain was very steep where they were working, Eades said.
Lewis County Coroner Warren McLeod identified the young man as Cole Bostwick.
It happened on the 4700 Line, according to the Lewis County Sheriff’s Office.
He was working for ENB Logging and Trucking, according to Chief Civil Deputy Stacy Brown.
The state Department of Labor and Industries was notified and presumably will be conducting an investigation.
It’s the fourth logging death in Lewis County this year.
In mid-January, 63-year-old Alex Oberg, of Toledo, was killed while cutting timber alone in the Toledo area. The sheriff’s office said a tree fell onto Oberg as he was employing a “domino” tree falling technique.
A month later, 21-year-old Tyler Bryan, also from Toledo, was working north of Morton when – according to the initial information from the sheriff’s office – a log being pulled up a slope by a cable began spinning and struck him.
Then in March, John B. Leonard, 69, died after he was struck by a long limb while logging in Salkum.
Tags: By Sharyn L. Decker, news reporter
Sorry for your loss.
http://www.gofundme.com/9gb4i4
If you’d like to help Cole Bostwick’s family there is a go fund me fundraiser going on.
Very sorry for your loss.
One thing that will live on is that Cole was a noble, hard working young man in a generation of slackers. You were raised well Cole.
Logging is an extremely dangerous profession. Proper safety rules and equipment cannot stop the force of a tree or heavy equipment. So sad to be so young.
Thank you all for your kind words. He will forever be missed and loved<3There is a whole in all of our hearts that can never be filled;(R.I.P Cole<3
How very sad. Logging remains a very dangerous occupation. I cannot imagine how the others involved must feel and my prayers go out for them too.
Very sad, 18 is still a kid. My thoughts go out to his family.
Many prayers for this family and crew. What a heartbreaking situation. 🙁
Rest in peace Cole.