Mechanic Critically Injured in Accident at Housing Construction Site

A 44-year-old Ventura man was in extremely critical condition after a tractor engine suspended on a crane struck his head at a Westlake housing construction site Thursday afternoon.

Samuel Brewer, a mechanic with Agoura-based Ebensteiner Inc., was working under a D-10 Caterpillar tractor at the site, near Bridgegate Street and Thornhill Avenue, said Joe Luna, a spokesman for the Ventura County Fire Department.

He was flown by helicopter to Los Robles Regional Medical Center and is in the hospital’s intensive care unit, said hospital spokeswoman Kris Carraway-Bowman.

Doctors continued to run tests on Brewer, who was unconscious with his family at his side, Carraway-Bowman said.

“He had . . . head trauma so the next 24 hours would be the most critical for him,” said Brian Williams, paramedic supervisor for American Medical Response, which arrived on site about 12:30 p.m.

“He was in pretty serious condition.” As Brewer worked underneath the tractor about 12:15 p.m., a crane suspending the tractor’s engine apparently shifted, pinning Brewer’s head between the engine block and the body of the tractor, Luna said.

The crane operator called police and freed Brewer just before authorities arrived, Luna said.

The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, which investigates industrial accidents, interviewed employees at the site and looked for any possible equipment problems, said Dean Fryer, a Cal/OSHA spokesman.

The investigation will take two to three months, Fryer said.

Cal/OSHA will investigate whether equipment was secured, whether employees were properly trained to operate the equipment and whether protective gear should have been issued, Fryer said.

Officials did not know whether Brewer was wearing protective gear, such as a helmet.

Cal/OSHA has up to six months by state law to compile its findings, Fryer said.

If it finds violations, it can cite Ebensteiner Inc. for anything from a couple hundred dollars to $70,000, Fryer said.

“Accidents do happen and we do conduct investigations where fatalities and serious injuries to employees occur where no citations are issued,” Fryer said.

Ebensteiner Inc. officials did not return phone calls.