His co-workers said they heard a big bang and thought the man had died as he fell slamming through 2-by-6 planks and plywood. A plumber at the site lifted the victim out of the hole and braced his back with his arm to keep him straight. The worker was transported to a local hospital in critical condition.
Prior Safety Violations
Officials with the New York City Department of Buildings evacuated the structure and opened an investigation, noting that the site’s conditions were endangering workers. Workers on the site said the man was wearing a harness, but they are not sure if the harness was hooked or not. A new five-story, 30-family apartment building is under construction at the site, the Daily News reports.
In October, the Department of Buildings issued a stop-work order on the site and declared an intent to revoke the contractor’s registration. The company was already facing more than $800,000 in fines for safety violations and had not yet paid up, officials said. They said the company had agreed to pay the fines and then ignored them. The stop-work order was rescinded in November when a new contractor took over the project. The investigation into this construction accident is still ongoing.
Workers and Elevator Accidents
A 2009 report in Occupational Health and Safety notes that people who install and maintain elevators are at a high risk for injury and death. They may become injured in a number of ways including falls, electrical shocks and other injuries related to confined spaces, scaffolds, cranes, rigging, hoisting and heavy equipment. Falls down elevator shafts are among the most common injuries suffered by elevator mechanics.
Incidents involving elevators and escalators kill about 30 people and seriously injure about 17,000 people each year in the United States, according to data provided by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics and the Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC). Elevators cause almost 90 percent of these deaths and 60 percent of the serious injuries. Injuries to people working on or near elevators, including those installing, repairing, and maintaining elevators, and working in or near elevator shafts, account for 14 (almost half) of the annual deaths. Among those working in or near elevator shafts, half of the deaths were due to falls into the shaft. Incidents where workers were caught in/between moving parts of elevators and escalators, are in or on elevators or platforms that collapse, or are struck by elevators or counterweights are also prevalent. It is important that workers have adequate job and safety training as well as fall protection when they work in or near elevator shafts.
If You Have Been Injured
Workers who are injured in elevator shaft accidents are at risk of suffering serious or even catastrophic injuries. Their injuries may prevent them from returning to work for an extended period of time or they may even lose their ability to earn a future livelihood due to the injuries. Injured victims can seek workers’ compensation benefits, which cover medical expenses and a portion of lost wages. In addition, workers can file what is known as a “third-party” claim against parties other than employers or co-employees for significant money damages and have two sources of compensation available for their losses. Examples of third parties include, but are not limited to, general contractors, sub-contractors, building owners, managing agents, construction companies etc.
The experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help victims of construction accidents better understand their legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for them. Our law firm recovered $3,375,576 for a construction worker (an undocumented immigrant) who was injured on the job – one of the highest construction case settlements in New York that year.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury cases in New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
Other TOLL FREE phone numbers for us are:
1-800-RADIO-LAW, 1-888-WYPADEK, OR 1-800-LAS-LEYES
Please visit us at: www.WORK4YOULAW.com
Source: http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/brooklyn/worker-injured-fall-elevator-shaft-brooklyn-site-article-1.2853769
