Worker seriously injured in accident at Bremerton construction site

BREMERTON — A 38-year-old man working on the replacement of the Manette Bridge was seriously injured at around 8 a.m. Saturday when something hit him in the head, according to Bremerton police.

His injuries appeared to be life-threatening, according to a report from the Bremerton Fire Department. Emergency personnel took the man to Harrison Medical Center, where he was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.

According to Bremerton police, the man was either on a barge or small tug beneath the bridge when he was struck in the head. Sgt. Randy Olson of the Bremerton Police said whatever struck him did not appear to fall down on him from the bridge.

Fellow workers put the man in a cage-enclosed stretcher and got him to a barge closer to shore in the area of the Boatshed Restaurant. From the shore, emergency personnel from the Bremerton Fire Department used a makeshift gangplank to get themselves out to the barge and the injured man.

He had obvious head injuries and was not conscious, according to the fire-department report, and his injuries appeared to be life-threatening.

Work stopped on the bridge after the accident, and the Washington Department of Labor and Industries is expected to immediately investigate what happened.