A heavy equipment operator just shy of 30 years' employment with the territorial government is dead after he was struck Thursday afternoon by a packer being loaded onto a trailer.

Bryan Midgett, 55, of Whitehorse, was hit at about 2:30 p.m. and died at the scene.

The packer was being loaded at the Takhini River Bridge on the Alaska Highway west of Whitehorse, Rob McClure, the acting director of the Yukon Workers Compensation Health and Safety Board, said today.

Exactly what happened has yet to be determined as the compensation board must still interview witnesses and compile physical evidence, McClure said in an interview.

Midgett was part of a crew resurfacing that stretch of the Alaska Highway near the bridge between Whitehorse and Haines Junction.

Because it's a workplace death, the board is conducting the investigation. It will provide a detailed report to the Yukon coroner's office, and may also give a list of recommendations or requirements to the employer as well.

Midgett had worked for the Department of Highways and Public Works' transportation maintenance branch for a little fewer than 30 years, said spokeswoman Marie-Louise Boylan.

'Excellent work record, very good person to work with the department is obviously very saddened by his loss and feels for the family,' said Boylan.

The department offers its condolences to both Midgett's family and the people who've worked with him over the last 30 years, she added.

While the Whitehorse RCMP were called to the scene, the police are no longer involved in the investigation as there is no criminal involvement, a spokesman said.