A contractor suffered burns after a live electrical cable was cut in central Dunedin this morning.
Fire and Emergency said three fire trucks attended the explosion, which they said was an electrical incident. Photo: RNZ / Tim Brown
Emergency services were called to George Street just before 9am.
A St John spokesperson said the worker received treatment at the scene before being taken to Dunedin Hospital in a serious condition.
The worker, from Isaac Construction, was part of the team working on the George Street retail quarter upgrade.
Isaac Construction chief executive Jeremy Dixon said the injuries were serious but not life-threatening.
"Our immediate focus is on supporting our colleague, her family and the wider Isaac team. Many of our people are understandably feeling very upset at what's happened," he said.
Members of the public reported hearing a loud bang, like metal pipes falling, just before 9am.
Dan Hewston said he read it was described as an explosion but it did not sound like that to him.
"All we heard is I thought a couple of pipes had fallen or something. Then people started running to help someone that looked like they'd been hurt. Then they started to chuck up sheeting around so you couldn't see anything else.
"There was a bit of commotion, people started running and grabbing water and someone said 'Chuck me a knife', so I thought someone had a pipe fall on them. But someone was reasonably seriously hurt.
"But no power went out and I didn't think it was an explosion."
Otago Sports Depot owner Brent Davies said the worker was conscious when she was loaded into the ambulance.
Dunedin City Council corporate and quality general manager Robert West said WorkSafe had been notified and the work site was closed until further notice.
"Our thoughts are with the injured person, their whānau and the wider Isaac Construction team," West said.
"Many DCC staff, particularly those working closely on the Retail Quarter project, are also feeling very shaken about what's happened. Our immediate focus is on supporting people - this includes making our employment counselling service available to both DCC and Isaac staff affected.
"We would also like to thank members of the public, particularly an off-duty doctor, who provided first aid assistance immediately after the incident."
It was too early to know what effect the incident would have on the project's timeline, West said.
"Other than ensuring the site is safe and the route for tomorrow's University graduation parade is ready to go, we are focused on supporting our people through this difficult time."