Man who died in Shetland wind farm construction accident named by police

The 23-year-old man who died after an accident at an onshore wind construction site in Shetland has been named by police.

Liam Macdonald from Tain was working at the Kergord converter station near Lerwick when the event took place, described as “tragic” by contractor BAM Nuttall.

In a statement, Police Scotland said: “The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) have been made aware and his family are being supported.

“Enquires will continue to establish the full circumstances of what happened.”

An HSE spokesperson previously confirmed the watchdog had been made aware of the incident and is helping the authorities with inquiries.

Emergency services were called to the construction site, part of the Viking wind farm, at around at 10.15am on Sunday, June 5, after reports of an injury.

Ambulance, police and coastguard all attended but Mr Macdonald died at the scene.

Companies involved in the project offered condolences to his family, while numerous messages of support were also shared online.

A key facilitator of the SSE Renewables’ Viking wind farm, the Kergord HVDC converter station is being built by Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN).

© Supplied by European Space Agenc

Contractor BAM Nuttall was awarded a contract to lead the civil engineering works at the site in 2020.

A spokesperson for BAM Nuttall previously said: “We can confirm an incident at our Viking Windfarm project site on Shetland yesterday has resulted in the tragic death of a colleague.

“Our condolences are with their family, and support is being made available to them and to members of the team. An investigation is underway and we’re working closely with our client and the relevant authorities.”

Following the news that a man had been killed at the site, SSE Renewables head of onshore projects, Derek Hastings said: “We are devastated by yesterday’s news and our thoughts and condolences are with the family, friends, and colleagues of the young man who tragically died.

“We are working closely with BAM Nuttall and the relevant authorities to understand what happened.”

Viking is poised to become the UK’s largest onshore wind farm, covering an area of about 17,000 acres around central Shetland.

Green energy produced by the development’s 103-turbines will be collected at Kergord before being sent to the national grid through a 160 mile subsea cable.