An equipment operator at a Bonneville Power Administration substation on the Hanford nuclear reservation died Monday after an accident at the site.
Kelly Loyd of Castle Rock was using a Bobcat with a backhoe when the accident occurred around 9 a.m., said Doug Johnson, BPA spokesman. He was taken to Kadlec Regional Medical Center in Richland, where he died.
"Our sympathies are with his family and whoever knew and will miss this gentleman," Johnson said. "Anytime a tragedy like this occurs, it is devastating for everyone involved."
Loyd, whose age was not immediately available, was employed by Christenson Electric Inc. and was doing excavation work with a BPA crew at the White Bluffs substation, Johnson said.
Johnson said BPA would convene an accident investigation board to look into what happened.
The substation is on the southern portion of the Hanford nuclear reservation that has been leased to BPA. Either OSHA or the Washington Department of Labor and Industries will be involved in the investigation. The two agencies were trying to determine Monday who had jurisdiction, said L&I spokesman Hector Castro.
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