State worker injured after being struck by tractor excavator in Puna

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KAILUA-KONA — A state Highways Division worker was injured Monday after being struck by a tractor excavator while working on Highway 130 in Puna.

The Hawaii Fire Department responded to the 12:59 p.m. alarm and found the man, said to be in his 30s, lying in the Hilo-bound lane of the highway, in the area of mile marker 14. He was still conscious, with obvious injuries to both legs.

The worker had been standing in the roadway when the operator of a state Highways Division tractor excavator was cutting trees, according to the fire department. The operator apparently was unaware someone was on the roadway when he struck the worker, pinning the man’s legs under the tractor tracks.

The victim was treated and taken to the Hilo Medical Center for further evaluation, according to the fire department.