University worker pinned by 1-ton block still in hospital

UPDATE: Officials with the University of Idaho say the worker who was pinned after a one-ton concrete block fell on his leg has undergone surgery and remains at a hospital.

University of Idaho Communications Director Jodi Walker said Thursday the worker – whose name has not been released – suffered a broken leg and other non-life threatening injuries.

According to the Moscow Police Department, the worker had been cleaning wood chips around the block before it became unstable. Authorities say the block fell on the man after he had turned away, pinning his leg to the ground.

The block was one of many stacked along a ramp at the Wood Management Facility on campus.

Capt. Greg Thomas of the Moscow Volunteer Fire Department says firefighters and university employees had to use a forklift to raise the block off the man.

ORGINAL:

Authorities say a worker at the University of Idaho was pinned for a time after a one-ton concrete block fell on his leg, trapping him at the school’s wood-chip storage facility.

The Moscow-Pullman Daily News reports the worker was able to use his cellphone or a radio to call for help after the accident Wednesday afternoon.

The block was being used as part of a ramp at the facility. Greg Thomas with the Moscow Fire Department said he was unsure of the circumstances that led to the block falling.

Emergency workers were able to extricate the man using a forklift and lift straps before transporting him to the local hospital.