By Wayne Gates
Brown County Press Editor
A worker was electrocuted at the Rumpke Landfill in Georgetown on Nov. 12.
The incident happened around 8 a.m. at the gas to electricity conversion plant at the landfill.
“The victim was using a high lift to hang some equipment on one of the turbine exhaust towers when his body apparently came in contact with a live electrical line,” said Georgetown Fire Chief Joey Rockey.
Rockey said the electrical line involved in the incident carried over 13 thousand volts of electricity.
Investigator Forrest “Buddy” Coburn from the Brown County Coroner’s Office said that the victim was 25 year old Jory VanEss.
He worked for Impact Compliance and Testing out of Michigan and is listed as an Environmental Consultant on the company website.
According to the company website, Impact Compliance and Testing “is an environmental consulting company that offers comprehensive air quality services including air permitting, source testing, ambient air monitoring, and engineering and regulatory analyses.”
The company had been hired by Energy Developments, Inc., the owner of the Georgetown plant.
In an e-mail statement, the Rumpke Corporation extended condolences.
“First and foremost, we are praying for that employee and we are very grateful to the Georgetown first responders who arrived at the site quickly and began assisting. We are keeping the injured individual and those touched by today’s accident in our thoughts.”
Rumpke also pledged support as the investigation into the incident continues.
Rockey said that the electrical line in question had been shut down in anticipation of the arrival of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
The power plant has been online since July of 2017. It is a 4.8 megawatt power plant that converts landfill gas to electricity, generating enough power to service almost 3000 homes on an annual basis.
The electricity is generated by burning the tons of Methane and Carbon Dioxide gas generated each year by the decomposition process at the landfill. The gas powers three engines inside the plant to generate electricity 24 hours a day.
Energy Developments, Inc of Nashville, TN spent eight million dollars to build the plant. The company purchases the gas from Rumpke, generates the electricity, and then selling the energy to American Municipal Power, Inc., a company that specializes in providing power to local communities.