Forklift Crashes Through Floor Of Swampscott Town Hall Garage

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — Swampscott fire crews rescued one man trapped in the garage outside of town hall after a construction accident Friday morning.

Swampscott Town Administrator Sean Fitzgerald told Patch that a volunteer using a forklift to move supplies for Saturday's Swamptoberfest was putting down a palett when the forklift crashed through the floor, trapping him.

Fitzgerald said first responders arrived on the scene quickly and were able to remove the man, who was alert and taken to the hospital as a precaution.

"Any type of accident like this is alarming and upsetting," Fitzgerald told Patch. "Frankly, we're grateful it appears as if he'll be OK. This accident could have been much worse and we are very lucky he didn't have injuries that were any more severe."

Contrary to some earlier reports, Fitzgerald said there is no indication the volunteer struck a support beam, and that the floor of the building that dates back to the 1890s just gave way.

He said there have been similar forklifts in the garage in the past with no known issues.

"We've been in contact with structural engineers to come out and investigate to ensure that future generations won't have to deal with something like this," he said.

Fitzgerald praised the emergency workers from Swampscott and Lynn who responded and helped rescue the volunteer.

"It was amazing to see our first responders move into action," he said. "It was awfully supportive to see we had the best of the best there to make sure we had as positive an outcome as possible from this accident."

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(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)