PHOENIX - A toppled drill rig has been removed from a collapsed 32-foot hole near Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport, but crews have yet to recover the body of a missing construction worker.
Authorities say a drill-rig operator is believed to be dead following Monday's work-site incident and it could take days before his body is recovered.
Phoenix Fire Department officials say the decision to shift to a recovery mode was based on the length of elapsed time since the drilling rig toppled over about 9:30 a.m. Monday.
The worker's name hasn't been released.
On Tuesday, a 550,000-pound crane and a 300,000-pound crane safely removed the drill rig that fell on its side during construction for the Sky Train guideway system.
Phoenix Fire Department officials say the rig still has to be stabilized at another location and crews have to be sure that the hole is safe before starting to remove large amounts of dirt to get to the body.
The fire department said the recovery mission will resume Wednesday at 7 a.m.