From Deseret News archives:

Worker found dead in Capitol

Published: Saturday, Jan. 5, 2008 12:28 a.m. MST
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A 30-year-old construction worker was found dead inside a crawl space underneath the Utah state Capitol on Friday afternoon.

Riverdale resident John David Welsh's body was discovered just before 2 p.m., just as ceremonies to rededicate the new building were beginning.

The cause of death is still being investigated, but Department of Public Safety spokesman Cameron Roden said the death did not appear to be suspicious and could be a result of an industrial accident on the site.

Welsh's body was in an area underneath the entire building, Roden said. He was in a crawl space with a dirt floor where a lot of duct work and piping can be found. Some of those areas are only accessible by crouching and others by completely crawling, Roden said.

"He is very difficult to get to," he said.

Investigators don't know when the man died, only that it was sometime between when he showed up for work and when he was found. He was found by another worker who notified authorities that the man was not breathing, Roden said.

The man was reportedly a subcontractor for Jacobsen Construction.

The death did not interrupt the dedication ceremony.

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