Fall into shaft

Two workers killed in construction site accident

On Tuesday, the emergency services were called to a construction site in St. Martin bei Traun with the keyword "persons fallen into lift shaft".

(Bild: Kerschbaummayr Werner)

A terrible accident at work in the St. Martin district of Traun (Upper Austria) claimed the lives of two workers (aged 29 and 51) on Tuesday morning. The two fell into a lift shaft together with a third colleague - who escaped with minor injuries.

At 11.15 a.m., the emergency services were called to a construction site in St. Martin bei Traun with the keyword "persons fallen into lift shaft". According to the police, two men - a 51-year-old Romanian from Linz and a 25-year-old from Altenberg - had been working in a lift shaft on the third floor, standing on secured wooden planks. Meanwhile, a 29-year-old Romanian from Traun was carrying out flexing work on the first floor of the shaft. Suddenly, the two men, together with the wooden boards, fell down the elevator shaft onto the 29-year-old working below.

Died in hospital
The three injured men were immediately rescued from the shaft by construction site workers who rushed to the scene and the rescue chain was set in motion. Despite resuscitation attempts, the 51-year-old tragically died at the scene of the accident. The 29-year-old was taken to the Med Campus in Linz with serious injuries, but died there in the afternoon. The third person involved was probably very lucky and was taken to the UKH in Linz with minor injuries.

Shocked colleagues cared for
The emergency services were on site with a large contingent and looked after the shocked colleagues of the two victims, some of whom had to witness the tragedy with their own eyes. A total of 20 people were cared for by the crisis intervention team.

The investigation into how this accident could have happened is ongoing. The labor inspectorate was informed and subsequently inspected the site. The Linz public prosecutor's office ordered an autopsy of the two deceased men.