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Central Point settles fatal accident By Chris Bristol SALEM � The Oregon Occupational Safety and Health Division and Central Point have settled a case stemming from a fatal accident last year in which a city employee was electrocuted while trying to repair a broken water line. Last week OR-OSHA dismissed four of five safety violations against the city in connection with the accident, which killed public works employee Jason Menteer and injured two co-workers. As a result, fines totaling $11,100 were reduced to $5,000 for the single violation. The settlement now awaits approval from an administrative law judge, which both sides expect shortly. City Administrator Jim Bennett called the settlement "fair" and said the city has taken steps to "make sure this kind of terrible accident never happens again." "It was a fair compromise, after we had a chance to explain to them our take on the accident and what we�ve been trying to do to improve safety," he added. "We felt it was time to resolve it once and for all." Menteer, 22, was electrocuted Aug. 30, 1999, when a copper tube he was holding severed a buried power line. He was part of a three-man city crew that had dug a trench in a late-night downpour while trying to repair a leaky residential water line on North Crest Drive. In the aftermath, the city and Pacific Power blamed each other for causing the accident. City officials and a lawyer for the victim�s family said an employee of the utility company failed to locate all the buried lines in the trench, including the one that electrocuted Menteer. Pacific Power denied the allegation. OR-OSHA initially fined the utility company $2,500 for "altering" the scene of the accident before investigators arrived, but the violation was dismissed earlier this summer after the company explained that it was only trying to restore power and make sure the scene was safe. OR-OSHA also accused the city of five safety violations, including allegations that city employees were not equipped with protective clothing (such as heavy-duty rubber gloves) and were inadequately trained in the recognition of electrical hazards. In its initial assessment, the agency noted that another city employee suffered an electric shock in a similar accident on the same street only four months earlier. The lone violation agreed on by the city incorporated elements of the dismissed violations, including allegations of inadequate training and failure to "de-energize" electrical circuits in the trench. The Menteer family said in January they were exploring a lawsuit against Pacific Power. Nothing has been filed. In September, the city created a new park in Menteer�s honor. It is called Jason Joseph Menteer Memorial Park and is located off Brandon Street near West Pine Street. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2000 Mail Tribune, Inc.