A tragic construction-site accident at the exclusive Yellowstone Club near Big Sky claimed the life of a 27-year-old Bozeman man on Tuesday, according to local authorities. Officials said the incident occurred during a routine material delivery, underscoring the risks workers face even during standard tasks on high-end residential and commercial jobsites.
Gallatin County Sheriff/Coroner Dan Springer confirmed in a press release that the victim, identified as Chance Dutcher, had been unloading a pallet of sheetrock from a work truck when the accident occurred. According to Springer, Dutcher was using an integrated crane system to lift the material when “the pallet fell off the crane and onto Dutcher.”
Emergency crews responded immediately, but Dutcher was pronounced dead at the scene. Springer reported that his cause of death “was determined to be blunt force injuries.”
The fatality comes at a time when construction activity in the Big Sky region continues to accelerate due to ongoing luxury development at the Yellowstone Club, a private residential and ski community known for some of the most expensive real estate in the country. With multimillion-dollar homes and large-scale resort expansions underway, hundreds of skilled tradesworkers and subcontractors navigate tight schedules, steep terrain, and winter hazards.
Safety experts say that material-handling activities—including lifting, unloading, and staging heavy building components—are among the most dangerous operations on a jobsite. Sheetrock pallets often weigh hundreds of pounds, and crane-assisted unloading requires close coordination, precise equipment handling, and stable ground conditions.
Investigators will review the circumstances surrounding the equipment, loading configuration, and worksite safety procedures to determine what factors contributed to the failure. Such reviews are standard in workplace fatalities and may involve the Montana Department of Labor & Industry, OSHA, and project safety officers.
Friends and colleagues described Dutcher as a hardworking tradesman building his career in the region’s booming construction sector. The Yellowstone Club and the contractors involved have not yet issued public statements, though additional information is expected as the investigation progresses.
The coroner’s office extended condolences to Dutcher’s family, noting the profound impact of construction-site tragedies on both loved ones and the wider workforce community. As winter approaches and seasonal challenges increase, officials are emphasizing the importance of strict safety protocols across Montana’s active jobsites.
Originally reported by MTN News in KBZK.
