Seward man killed on job recalled as ‘hard worker’

A Westmoreland County man who died from injuries suffered in a Cambria County power plant accident is being remembered by his family as a hard worker dedicated to helping his neighbor.

Dave 'Bing' Banko, 44, of Seward, died at 5:50 p.m. Monday, about six hours after he and three co-workers were burned at the Ebensburg Power Co. co-generation plant on New German Road in Cambria Township.

'He loved to work and he was a good worker,' his brother, Don Banko, 47, of New Florence RD1, said Tuesday.

'Working is what he enjoyed doing,' said his wife, Trisha Banko. She has not been told what caused the accident.

Banko suffered second- and third-degree burns on about 90 percent of his body, according to the Allegheny County Coroner's Office. He was pronounced dead at the West Penn Hospital Burn Trauma Center in the Bloomfield section of Pittsburgh, where he was taken by emergency helicopter.

Co-workers Keith Rhine, 25, of Homer City, Indiana County, was in critical condition yesterday, and Daryl Landrum, 48, of Vintondale, Cambria County, was in serious condition, both in the same Pittsburgh burn center. A hospital spokeswoman declined to discuss their injuries.

The remaining worker, Roger Shaffer, 38, of Johnstown, was in fair condition yesterday at Conemaugh Memorial Medical Center in Johnstown.

The four men, working for Patent Construction Systems, were erecting scaffolding at a plant boiler. Preliminary indications are that the four were inside the boiler and were scalded by a blast of steam, according to the coroner's office. The cause is under investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, OSHA, and company officials.

'Our job was to erect the scaffolding ... that would allow the (power plant staff) to do the maintenance work,' said Ken Julian, spokesman for Harsco Corp. of Camp Hill, Cumberland County, Patent's parent company. 'There were five (men) in all - four inside and one outside. All the men were experienced people that had done work for us in the past.'

The boiler is used to make steam to turn turbines that are used to create electricity.

'We don't know exactly what caused it,' said Sharyn McCaulley, spokeswoman for plant operator Babcock & Wilcox of Barberton, Ohio. 'The boiler was down for maintenance, and the incident occurred in the boiler itself, we believe.'

Three of the men were carried out of the boiler, and the fourth needed to be extricated by emergency workers, according to Ron Springer, deputy director of Cambria County Emergency Management.

'It's our policy not to comment on open investigations,' said Robert Szymanski, area director of OSHA's Pittsburgh office.

But he noted his agency would try to determine what happened to avoid a recurrence of the accident. He said the probe could last up to six months. Fines, if deemed appropriate, could be imposed.

In a prepared statement, plant manager Gary Anderson said: 'We were deeply saddened to learn of the death of one of the employees involved in (Monday's) incident. We share in his family's grief and remain committed to investigating the cause of this tragic accident.

'Our thoughts are also with the other Patent Construction employees who remain hospitalized.'

Springer said hazardous materials were stored at the plant. 'The incident did not involve any chemicals or the release of any chemicals,' he said.

Don Banko said his brother was working three or four weekdays each week for Patent and a carpenters union based in Johnstown, and Friday, Saturday and Sunday at the Dilworth Mine in Greene County.

Trisha Banko said she and her husband were planning to use some of the money from his two jobs to remodel their home. She described her husband as a man who helped others.

'He was just one of those guys who talked to anybody. He'd help anybody who needed it,' Trisha Banko said.

Brother-in-law Ron Gyure agreed. 'He was just a heck of a good guy, do anything for anybody. He was always helping people out. ... He was a good father and good husband.'

The 50-megawatt plant where Banko died burns waste coal to produce steam and electricity. The steam provides heat and hot water to local businesses, while the electricity is sold to Penelec. The plant began commercial operations in 1991.