PHOENIX (AP) - The Latest on the collapse of a drilling rig in Phoenix that trapped a construction worker (all times local):
6:30 p.m.
Crews are ready to begin removing dirt from a 30-foot hole caused by a toppled drill rig near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport and try to recover the body of a missing construction worker before nightfall.
Authorities say a drill-rig operator is believed to be dead following Monday’s work-site incident and it could take days before his body is recovered.
The worker’s name hasn’t been released.
On Tuesday, a 550,000-pound crane and a 300,000-pound crane safely removed the drill rig that fell on its side during construction for the Sky Train guideway system.
Phoenix Fire Department officials say a vacuum has been brought in to remove the dirt remotely from the ladder bucket of a fire truck.
They say the vantage point will give them the best chance at spotting the body.
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4:45 p.m.
A toppled drill rig has been removed from a collapsed 30-foot hole near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, but crews have yet to recover the body of a missing construction worker.
Authorities say a drill-rig operator is believed to be dead following Monday’s work-site incident and it could take days before his body is recovered.
The worker’s name hasn’t been released.
On Tuesday, a 550,000-pound crane and a 300,000-pound crane safely removed the drill rig that fell on its side during construction for the Sky Train guideway system.
Phoenix Fire Department officials say the rig still has to be stabilized at another location and crews have to be sure that the hole is safe before starting to remove large amounts of dirt to get to the body.
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2:40 p.m.
Authorities say search and rescue efforts for a missing construction worker near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport are shifting to a recovery operation.
They say a drill-rig operator is believed to be dead following Monday’s work-site incident and it could take days before his body is recovered.
The worker’s name hasn’t been released.
Phoenix Fire Department officials say the decision to shift to a recovery mode was based on the length of elapsed time since the drilling rig toppled over about 9:30 a.m. Monday.
The rig fell on its side during construction for the Sky Train guideway system.
Crews were unable to move the downed drill rig despite removing some of the rig’s heavy components over a 12-hour span.
They stopped around 11:45 p.m. Monday due to safety concerns and resumed again Tuesday morning.
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7:45 a.m.
Crews are poised to resume attempts to move a toppled drilling rig at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport where one construction worker is missing.
Fire Capt. Jake Van Hook says efforts to use cranes, back hoes and other equipment to move the toppled rig didn’t’ work and officials decided late Monday night to bring in a larger crane Tuesday.
The rig fell over Monday morning during construction for the Sky Train guideway system.
Airport operations aren’t affected by the accident.
No information has been released about the construction worker.
Authorities say the trench where the rig toppled is unstable and that has complicated the situation.
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