FWBPD Active Investigation: Fall with Serious Injury During Gulfview Hotel Relocation
Fort Walton Beach - On Wednesday, April 18, 2018, at 3:08 a.m., Fort Walton Beach Police and Fire Departments, as well as Okaloosa County EMS, responded to a fall that occurred at a pole on the eastbound side of Miracle Strip Parkway, across from Circle K Convenience Store. Mr. Phillip Dehart, 58, of Milton, Florida, was rendered immediate aid at the scene by City personnel who were staged in the area and subsequently transported to the Fort Walton Beach Medical Center with serious injuries. He is currently listed in critical but stable condition and has his daughter with him for support.
Further investigation by the Fort Walton Beach Police Department indicated that Mr. Dehart was in a bucket truck in efforts to relocate cable lines during the relocation of the Gulfview Hotel. An employee of Gulf Power was operating a truck on Miracle Strip when he ran over a cable that was draped from a pole that Mr. Dehart was working on. This contact with the cable pulled Mr. Dehart out of the bucket and caused him to fall 20” 4” to the roadway. Mr. Dehart was wearing a safety harness, but it was not secured to the bucket.
Mr. Dehart is a contractor with QFCS (Quality Cable and Fiber Services), a contractor for Cox Communications. This investigation is ongoing and anyone with information is asked to contact the Fort Walton Beach Police Department at 850-833-9546 or Emerald Coast Crime Stoppers at 850-863-TIPS, emeraldcoastcrimestoppers.com or by using the P3 Tips Mobile application.
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A worker was critically injured early Wednesday morning while helping move the historic Gulfview Hotel to its new location on Miracle Strip Parkway in Fort Walton Beach.
The man fell out of a bucket truck around 3 a.m., according to Jo Soria, the city's public information officer.
The worker, who has not been identified, was rushed to Fort Walton Beach Medical Center. He was responsive but in critical condition, Soria confirmed.
The 112-year-old Gulfview Hotel reached its final location at 115 Miracle Strip Parkway S.E. before the accident. U.S. Highway 98, which was closed between Beal Parkway and Florida Place for several hours for the move overnight, has reopened.
The hotel will eventually reopen as the Fort Walton Beach Welcome Center.
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Gulfview move seriously injured in fall
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By Staff report
Posted at 8:16 AM Updated at 3:45 PM
FORT WALTON BEACH, FL —
A contractor who was helping the Gulfview Hotel down U.S. Highway 98 Wednesday was seriously injured when he fell from a bucket truck.
Phillip Dehart, 58 of Milton, was working to relocate cable lines at about 3 a.m. Wednesday when he fell over 20 feet onto the road, according to a press release from the Fort Walton Beach Police Department.
An employee of Gulf Power was operating the truck on Miracle Strip Parkway when he ran over a cable that was draped from a pole Dehart was working on, the press release said. The truck’s contact with the cable pulled the victim out of the bucket.
Dehart was wearing a safety harness but it was not secured to the bucket, the press release said. Spokeswomen Jo Soria said there is no information at this time as to why the safety harness wasn’t attached.
The victim was a contractor with Quality Cable and Fiber Services working with the Gulfview Hotel relocation project, where crews moved the 5,500-square-foot historic building a quarter-mile down Miracle Strip Parkway in downtown Fort Walton Beach. The move began at 9 p.m. Tuesday and the hotel was secured in its final location just past 4 a.m. Wednesday.
The fall occurred at a pole on the south side of U.S. 98 across from the Circle K convenience store and Gulf Coast Seafood Market, the press release said. The hotel already had been moved beyond that spot when the accident occurred.
Crews with the Fort Walton Beach Fire Department were already staged on site in case of emergencies, and immediately rendered aid to the man. The Fort Walton Beach Police Department and Okaloosa County EMS also responded.
As of 3 p.m. Wednesday Dehart was listed in critical but stable condition. His daughter was by his side for support, the press release said.
Fort Walton Beach Police is investigating the fall.
This story will be updated with new information as it becomes available.