South Bay : Worker Impaled on Rod; Listed in Critical Condition
A 51-year-old construction worker was critically injured Thursday in Westchester after he fell 20 feet from a scaffolding and was impaled on an inch-thick steel rod, authorities said.
Rescue crews worked for more than an hour to free the Monterey Park man from the rod, which gored him between the left shoulder and chest, Los Angeles Fire Department spokesman Bob Collis said.
The rod, used to reinforce concrete structures, appeared to have pierced the man’s lung, Collis said. The victim also may have fractured his arms in the accident.
The man, whose name was not released because relatives had not been notified, was working as a concrete finisher on a project at the Hyperion Wastewater Treatment Plant when he fell about 11:35 a.m., apparently while descending a ladder, authorities said.
He was transported by helicopter to Harbor/UCLA Medical Center in Westwood, where he was listed in critical condition.
The victim, employed by H.K. Concrete of Upland, was one of several construction workers on a $170-million expansion project at the facility. Company officials could not be reached for comment.
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