A construction worker was injured at the Bainbridge Island ferry terminal at about noon Sept. 8 when a section of a new walkway fell as it was being transferred from a barge in Eagle Harbor onto the terminal roadway.

The accident occurred when the transport system failed, and the heavy section of the walkway crashed back onto the barge, wounding a worker who sustained a head injury. Bainbridge Fire Department treated the injured worker, who was coherent and talking. As a precaution, the person was airlifted to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle by helicopter.

State Department of Transportation communications representative Diane Rhodes said the contractor held a stand-down after the accident and reviewed all safety protocols. The contractor modified the transport system, successfully moved the first span off the barge early Sept. 9, and set it in place at 7:30 that evening.

Construction has resumed, and the remaining spans will be moved off the barge and set onto concrete and steel footings Sept. 11. The injured worker has been released from the hospital, and DOT expects to reopen the ferry terminal for vehicle traffic Sept. 13.