An accident at Orange County’s John Wayne Airport in Santa Ana has resulted in the death of a maintenance worker.
NBC News reports that the accident happened Tuesday, February 19th in the late morning near Gate 3. Two workmen were performing maintenance on a tire for a jet bridge that is used to connect jets to the airport terminal. During the process of disassembling the wheel to maintain it, the four-foot tire exploded inside the workshop.
One worker was killed by the exploding tire while the second employee did not seek treatment. Neither of the workers’ identities has been released by authorities.
Deanne Thompson, Spokeswoman for John Wayne Orange County Airport, said in a statement that the two men worked for JBG, a company that was contracted to handle and maintain the baggage system and jet bridges for the airport.
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“They were disassembling it, and it exploded, and that force caused all the damage,” Thompson said in a statement to the Orange County Register. The force of the explosion, according to Thompson, also set off alarms at the airport, however, no flights in or out of the airport were affected.
Orange County Sheriff’s Department deputies were on the scene for the initial investigation of the accident. Because of the fatal accidental accident happened in the workplace, accident investigations will also be performed by Cal-OSHA.
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