Worker killed at water plant in Chesco

A worker was killed early yesterday in an accident at an Aqua America water treatment facility in Chester County. Kevin Boyle, 50, of Kempton, Berks County, was found under a large forklift and a pile of steel construction beams at the Pickering Creek Water Treatment Plant in Schuylkill Township, according to police.

Boyle and another worker with Michael F. Ronca & Sons of Bethlehem, Pa., were attempting to move the beams when the accident occurred. Boyle was pronounced dead at the scene. The Ronca firm has been involved in a year-long project to upgrade and replace high service lift pumps at the facility, an Aqua spokesperson said.

Ronca, a general and heavy mechanical contractor, has about 150 employees. According to a spokesman, this was the first fatality in its history. The accident is under investigation by OSHA.

- Mari A. Schaefer