Dive Summary:
- More than 1,000 spectators gathered Saturday for the demolition of PG&E’s Kern power plant in Bakersfield, California but five of them left injured. Shrapnel flying off the imploding plant severed a man's leg and injured four others, officials say. The 44-year-old man amputated by the accident also sustained major injuries to his other leg and may lose both limbs.
- PG&E hired subcontractors to handle the demolition of the plant’s 140-feet boiler structure and erected a safe perimeter 1,000 feet from the implosion. "We are deeply saddened that this happened," Denny Boyles, a PG&E spokesman said. "We're looking for answers like everyone else."
- The Kern plant was decommissioned in 1986 with residents eager to see it come down. PG&E reached an agreement with the city to clean up the site and prepare it for sale.
From the article:
“Cleveland Wrecking Co. of Covina, Calif., the main contractor on the demolition, issued a statement expressing sympathy and vowing a thorough investigation but declined further comment.”