One worker dead, others injured after TV tower collapses in southwest Missouri

One person is dead and others were injured after a 1,980-foot-tall television station tower collapsed Thursday near Fordland in southwest Missouri.

Six people were working on the tower and another worker was in an adjacent building when the tower collapsed just before 10 a.m., said Robert Talburt, the assistant chief of the Logan-Rogersville Fire Protection District

Contract workers from Washington state were performing maintenance on the tower, at 905 State Highway FF, to comply with some FCC changes and were about 105 feet off the ground, Talburt said. The tower was built in 1971, he said.

It's unclear what caused the tower to come crashing down, and an investigation is ongoing, he said.

The identity of the worker who died has not yet been released by Webster County authorities.

Three others were taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The tower was used by KOZK Ozarks Public Television, which is operated from Missouri State University in Springfield.

"We are shocked and saddened by the news," Suzanne Shaw, vice president for marketing and communications, said in a statement. "Our condolences go out to the victims and their families. We are also providing support and resources to the other team members affected."

This story was originally published April 19, 2018 at 4:18 PM with the headline "One worker dead, others injured after TV tower collapses in southwest Missouri."