Search Efforts Underway After Bulldozer Operator Falls Into Coal Pile

Crews are now working to stabilize the equipment so that it can be removed from the trench.

One person is unaccounted for after a bulldozer and its operator fell into a coal pile at Santee Cooper’s Winyah Generating Station.

Georgetown County emergency crews responded to the incident around 8pm Thursday night.

The bulldozer is reportedly partially buried under a pile of coal in a trench that is nearly 50-feet deep.

Santee Cooper’s Emergency Response Team has now taken over recovery efforts.

It reportedly took eight hours to locate the bulldozer. Crews are now working to stabilize the equipment so that it can be removed from the trench.

The man who crews are working to locate has been identified as 23-year-old Cody Jordan.

An investigation has been launched to reveal how the incident occured.