In a crash report, OSHP troopers reported that one of the two injured workers said that they were painting the underside of the bridge from the basket.
He told troopers that a semi truck had passed very close to the basket, so he attempted to move the boom farther away from the left-hand lane of traffic. However, when he tried to do so the lift wouldn’t move.
He said that he yelled for help, hit the reset button on the lift, and was trying to push the power pedal with his hand when a semi truck hit the basket of the lift.
In the report, troopers said that a trailer being pulled by a semi truck hit the basket with its upper right corner, denting in the front corner of the metal basket, ripping off part of the basket’s railing and tearing open the trailer.
Both workers were thrown from the basket onto the road below. A third worker on the ground told troopers he pulled the injured workers out of the way of traffic and called 911.
Both injured men were taken to Miami Valley Hospital with serious injuries. The second of the two workers was unable to give troopers a statement due to the severity of their injuries.
According to the report, a second truck was also damaged when it hit a falling bucket of paint.
The driver of the truck that struck the lift told troopers that there was very poor lighting underneath the bridge where the lift was, and troopers confirmed that there were no work lights under the bridge, making the lift hard to see.
A supervisor for the construction company later tried to move the lift as well and was unable to do so. On investigation it was found the lift had a mechanical failure before the crash.
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