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2 workers seriously injured in fall from Portland bridge

Published  February 8, 2017 3:42pm PST
Associated Press

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — Fire crews rescued two workers after one of the men fell 40 feet from scaffolding while painting Portland's Ross Island Bridge and struck the other worker on his way down.

Portland Fire & Rescue says the workers suffered serious injuries Wednesday and were taken to OHSU Hospital.

A rope-rescue team was among those who responded to the bridge shortly after 8 a.m. Crews used a fire truck ladder to reach the workers and lower them to the ground.

Oregon Department of Transportation spokesman Dave Thompson told The Oregonian/OregonLive that one worker dropped from upper scaffolding and hit the other worker while falling to a lower platform.

Details about what caused the worker to fall have not been released.

The bridge that spans the Willamette River opened in 1926.