Originally published Tuesday, September 16, 2008 at 12:00 AM

Worker injured by high-voltage line in Tukwila

A man was rushed to Harborview Medical Center with third-degree burns after his work equipment made contact with a high-voltage power line in Tukwila, fire officials said.

By Seattle Times staff

A man was rushed to Harborview Medical Center with third-degree burns after his work equipment made contact with a high-voltage power line in Tukwila, fire officials said.

The man, who was not identified, was listed in critical condition Monday evening, according to Tukwila Fire Department Battalion Chief Marty Grisham. A second man was also injured but was treated at the scene by medics and released, Grisham said.

The two men were painting a commercial building from a lift bucket in the 17100 block of West Valley Highway when some equipment hanging from the lift bucket came into contact with the 115,000-volt power line, causing a "bit of an explosion and fire," Grisham said.

The accident tripped the circuit breakers at the Renton substation and caused a power outage that affected about 900 customers, including the Westfield Southcenter mall, for about half an hour, according to Andy Wappler of Puget Sound Energy.

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