A man operating a dump truck at Yeager Airport's runway extension project was injured Tuesday when the vehicle's cab twisted away from its dump bed and overturned as he was offloading a cargo of mud.
The accident occurred about 10:50 a.m., on a relatively flat area a short distance below the grade of Yeager's main runway.
"He was operating an articulated truck, where the dump bed and cab are connected by a swiveling pivot," said Rick Atkinson, Yeager's executive director. "He was dumping mud out of his truck that had been scraped off the haul road to get it dried up.
While the truck's cargo bed was in the dump position, the mud being dumped apparently adhered to the bed, causing the front wheels of the truck's cab to come off the ground, and turning the cab on its side. The driver was pinned inside, Atkinson said.
As rescue workers struggled to free the driver, a HealthNet helicopter touched down at a nearby clearing on a level spot. When the driver was freed at about 11:30 a.m., he was placed on a gurney, loaded in an ambulance, and driven the short distance to the HealthNet chopper, which flew him to CAMC General.
"He was alert and conscious through the whole process," said Atkinson.
The driver, who was not identified, was working for Cast & Baker Construction of Canonsburg, Pa.
The accident did not affect air traffic at the airport.
Cast & Baker is working on a $19.6 million contract to extend the main runway at Yeager Airport, install safety overrun areas, and straighten and widen the main taxiway.
To contact staff writer Rick Steelhammer, use e-mail or call 348-5169.
Copyright 2005 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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