Bristol Worker Killed on the Job

An employee at Line Power Manufacturing Corp. died Saturday in an accident that occurred while he was working on a piece of electrical equipment.

By Amy Hunter
Published: March 15, 2009

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An employee at Line Power Manufacturing Corp. died Saturday in an accident that occurred while he was working on a piece of electrical equipment.

Joel W. Gobble, 38, of Bluff City, Tenn., was pronounced dead at Bristol Regional Medical Center at 11 a.m., about three hours after the incident, said Randy Grimes, director of safety with Electro-Mechanical Corp., which owns Line Power.

“We don’t know exactly what happened,” Grimes said Saturday. “The incident is under investigation by both us and the Virginia Department of Occupational Safety and Health. We can confirm that he was testing a piece of electrical equipment.”

Bristol Virginia Police dispatchers received a call about the accident at 8 a.m. Saturday, and the Bristol Lifesaving Crew was sent to the scene. Gobble was then transported to the medical center emergency room.

Grimes said Gobble was hired as an electrical tester at Line Power on Jan. 12 and had specialized training in the field.

Line Power manufactures power-generation equipment for mining and industry, Grimes said. Gobble was on site Saturday morning with a small shift of about 20 employees testing a product that was set to be shipped out soon and needed additional work, Grimes said.

Grimes could not comment on whether electricity was involved in Gobble’s death or whether there were eyewitnesses to the incident, he said. Additionally, he could not comment on what the investigation was looking into or if an autopsy would be performed.

“This type of accident has never occurred in the 30 some years that Line Power has been in operation,” Grimes said. “The Line Power family is certainly upset, and our hearts and minds are with the family.”

ahunter@bristolnews.com | (276) 645-2531