Subcontractor ‘On Site’ Ahead of Fatal Wisconsin Blast

A communications company said Thursday that a subcontractor was working “on site” before an explosion that killed a Wisconsin firefighter this week.

Authorities have said a crew punctured a natural gas main in downtown Sun Prairie on Tuesday, resulting in an explosion that damaged five buildings and killed Sun Prairie Fire Department Capt. Cory Barr.

Verizon Wireless said Thursday it had contracted with Lawrence, Kansas-based Bear Communications for a fiber optics project in Sun Prairie. Bear said in a statement that its subcontractor was working “on site” but gave no other details. Bear spokesman Scott Stein said in a telephone interview that the subcontractor’s employees were working in the “vicinity” of the explosion and were evacuated before the blast occurred. In a statement, Bear Communications says no one from its company was present on site when the gas line began leaking.

Bear Communications of Lawrence, Kansas, on Friday said that VC Tech Inc. was working in the Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, area before Tuesday’s blast. Bear Communications says when VC Tech’s employees smelled gas, they notified authorities of the gas leak and helped evacuate people before the explosion happened.

A contact for VC Tech could not be found. A search of an Occupational Safety and Health Administration database found no safety violations by VC Tech in the past five years.

Sun Prairie officials declined to release any information Thursday about the identity of the workers who punctured the main, citing an ongoing investigation.

Bear said in its statement that “many questions” remain and it’s cooperating with investigators. TDS Telecom said it has been working on a fiber optics project in Sun Prairie but none of their workers or contractors ruptured the line.

Amy Jahns is a spokeswoman for We Energies, which owns the gas main. She declined to comment Thursday when asked if whoever punctured the line had made any effort to locate it before starting work, referring questions back to police.

The explosion happened after police received a call of a gas leak in downtown Sun Prairie, a Madison suburb of about 30,000 people. Something sparked the gas while firefighters and other emergency responders were evacuating people from the area.

The blast rained debris up and down the street and leveled the Barr House, a tavern Barr owned. Ensuing fires damaged four other buildings, including Glass Nickel Pizza and a steak restaurant.

Barr was working to evacuate people when he was caught in the blast, Fire Chief Chris Garrison has said. Eleven other people, including five other firefighters and a police officer, were hurt.