Vermont Contractor Fined over Worker’s Bridge Fall

A Vermont contractor is being fined $3,500 after a worker fell 30-feet from a Putney bridge into the passing lane of Interstate 91.

J.A. McDonald of Lyndon Center was fined for failing to keep employees from falling through holes more than six feet above a lower level.

The employee who fell in September suffered broken bones, but his injuries were not life threatening.

The state had proposed fining McDonald $5,600, but the amount was reduced after company officials met with the state.

Robert McLeod of Vermont Occupational Safety and Health says McDonald has taken steps to ensure such an incident doesn’t happen again.

The Brattleboro Reformer says an investigation found the employee was wearing the proper safety equipment, but it wasn’t attached to a safety line.