Construction at the Customs House downtown Victoria took an unexpected turn this morning when a construction vehicle drove through a top story window.
Foreman Daryl Gurniuk says the employee had some materials on site hooked onto his front loader when he was working.
“The gentleman was removing the material from the floor and he picked up some wet carpet and when he went to dump it out the window it hooked on his bucket and it dragged him out the window,” Guryniuk said. “We had plans in store for that, there’s a three foot wall that he would drive into as a barrier, and that stopped him from going all the way down. He wasn't injured, just a little shooken up.”
Getting the vehicle back in the window and cleaning up took a few hours.
"It took us a couple hours, we had to make sure everything was safe," Guryniuk said. "We had to have a safety meeting, then we shut the site down and mustered, and made sure everyone was accounted for."
The employee was sent home for the day following the incident.
The building is being turned into luxury condos. The outer facade of the building will remain, but the inside is currently being removed.