Construction Worker Falls 50 Feet Through Hole In Bridge: Stratford FD

STRATFORD, CT — A construction worker was seriously injured Tuesday morning after falling through a hole in the Devon Bridge and landing about 50 feet below onto a construction barge, according to fire officials.

The construction worker, a 55-year-old woman, was taken to Bridgeport Hospital after crews used a “rope rescue system” to extricate her from the barge, according to Stratford Assistant Chief/ Fire Marshal Robert Daniel.

Crews responded just before 8 a.m. to Route 1 at the Devon Bridge on the report of the construction worker falling through a hole in the bridge and landing on a construction barge below.

“Stratford Fire Rescue responded to the scene with Car 3, Engine 1, Tac 5, Truck 1, Marine Rescue 233, and Safety Car 5,” Daniel wrote in a news release. “Under the command of Assistant Chief Mike Camperlengo, Stratford Firefighters using Marine 233 moored alongside the barge.”

Daniel said Stratford firefighters and Stratford EMS paramedics “treated, stabilized and using a rope rescue system” extricated the woman, who had fallen through a 3-by-5-foot opening and fell approximately 40 to 50 feet, landing on the barge below.

The Devon Bridge is currently under repairs on the south bound side as part of a rehabilitation project. The woman is an employee of Mohawk North East, the contractor repairing the bridge, according to Daniel.

“The rescue involved a team-oriented effort of all Stratford Public Safety Departments including Dispatch, Fire, Police and EMS,” Daniel said.