PORT TOWNSEND — A crane collapsed at the Port of Port Townsend, injuring the crane operator but causing no damage to the buildings and boats around it.
Just after 9:30 a.m. Friday, East Jefferson Fire-Rescue was called to the intersection of 10th and Boat streets after the crane tipped over, injuring and briefly trapping the operator, whose name has not been released.
The fire department does not release names because of privacy concerns.
First responders extricated the man from the wreckage before he was taken to Jefferson County International Airport to be airlifted to Harborview Medical Center by Airlift Northwest, said Bill Beezley, fire department spokesman.
Beezley said he did not know the man’s condition but added that medics did not consider his injuries to be life-threatening.
The crane, owned by Port Townsend-based boatbuilding company Craftsmen United Inc., was removing the mast from a fishing vessel from Alaska, the Marilyn J., when it tipped over.
What caused it to tip was unknown Friday.
The crane collapsed into the intersection of 10th and Boat streets. It didn’t hit any of the buildings or other boats in the area when it fell.
First responders blocked off the area with yellow caution tape. The crash drew two ambulances and three firetrucks, which then drew a crowd of roughly a dozen people.
The incident is being investigated by the state Department of Labor and Industries, Beezley said.
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Jefferson County Editor/Reporter Cydney McFarland can be reached at 360-385-2335, ext. 55052, or at cmcfarland@peninsuladailynews.com.
