Local man in construction accident back to work

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Three St. Croix County workers, including an Ellsworth man, were among eight involved in a bad construction accident in the Twin Cities last summer, but have made complete recoveries.

Three of the workers —- Patrick Linder, 26, of Ellsworth, Timothy Stanton, 38, of Roberts and William Zander, 59, of Shakopee, Minn. —- were seriously injured and rushed to North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale, Minn. The men suffered broken bones and other cuts and bruises, but none had serious head injuries, hospital officials said at the time.

Five other construction workers, who included Christopher Walter, 25, of Somerset, as well as four Minnesota residents, were taken to a hospital for treatment and released soon afterward.

At a Maple Grove, Minn., work site on June 1, 2007, a worker was trapped in a tight three-foot-high space with his leg crushed by freshly poured concrete, according to authorities.

Dale Sandven, 46, of Cambridge, Minn., was rescued from the second floor of the partially constructed office building by co-workers and emergency personnel and was flown to North Memorial Medical Center.

Eight other construction workers, who had been working on top of the third floor when it collapsed onto the second, where Sandven was standing, were injured in the accident, authorities said. Twin Cities television stations aired extensive footage showing twisted rebar that had fallen to the area below.

Sandven had been watching the pouring of concrete from below, looking for leaks, when part of the floor collapsed on him.

In a brief phone interview, Linder said he essentially has made a full recovery and is back at work, but declined to discuss the situation in more detail.

Friends who organized a fundraising benefit for him said he was able to go deer hunting last November, after his injuries healed to allow it. The benefit event, to help cover his medical expenses, was held early last fall at an Ellsworth area bar and grill, and featured live music and other entertainment.

Linder did say he and Stanton don’t see each other much at job sites because they work in different facets of the construction process. He and Tim McGough, of McGough Construction of Robbinsdale, where the two men are employed, said Stanton has gotten better and both men are back on the job.

The accident happened near the Shoppes at Arbor Lakes, a shopping center at the junctions of Interstate 94, Interstate 694 and Hemlock Lane in Maple Grove.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration last fall did further investigation into the cause of the accident.

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