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The operator of the crane that collapsed on the Butte des Morts bridge Thursday in Winnebago County has been identified as Martin DeRidder, a Lunda Construction employee. (AP Photo/Oshkosh Northwestern, Joe Sienkiewicz)
The operator of the crane that collapsed Thursday on the Butte des Morts Bridge in Winnebago County has been identified as Martin DeRidder.
DeRidder, 33, of Plymouth and an employee of Lunda Construction Co., Black River Falls, was taken to Theda Clark Medical Center in Neenah after the accident, according to Sgt. Jeffrey Gruss of the Winnebago County Sheriff’s Office. The hospital declined to comment on DeRidder’s condition at the request of his family, said Megan Wilcox, a spokewoman for Theda Clark.
Joseph R. Bidler, 35, of Green Bay, was killed when the crane collapsed around 9 a.m. Thursday. He was employed by Spancrete Inc. for more than 11 years, according to a news release from Spancrete. The Waukesha-based company is performing subcontractor work for Lunda on the Highway 41 project. An employee at Lunda refused to comment Wednesday.
Wisconsin Department of Transportation spokesman Kris Schuller said the crane was trying to lift a beam on the Butte Des Morts Bridge when it collapsed.
On April 20, another crane being used on the Highway 41 project collapsed in the De Pere area. Raymond Ashenbrenner, 58, of Black River Falls, was killed while unloading a crane in a work area in Brown County. He worked for Lunda, a subcontractor to Brownsville-based Michels Corp.
Lunda is building the $54 million project for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation.
The Occupational Health and Safety Administration’s Appleton office is still investigating Thursday’s accident.
