East Harlem Scaffolding Collapse Causes Anxious Moments

 Two construction workers were left dangling near the top of a public housing building after a scaffolding collapse. According to an NBC news report, the workers were doing brick and mortar work at one of the Washington-Lexington Houses on Lexington Avenue and East 98th Street when the scaffolding tipped. Bystanders said the scaffolding was dangling at a 45-degree angle. Police officers who arrived at the scene lowered ropes to the workers and were able to get the men to safety through a window of the building.

Both workers were treated at the scene for non-life-threatening injuries and transported to an area hospital. Emergency responders said that the rescue was fraught with danger and that the workers were afraid for their safety. Investigators at the scene said one of the two motors on the scaffolding failed, causing the collapse. The New York City Housing Authority manages the Washington-Lexington Houses. This is the second scaffolding collapse this month in the city. On May 10, two window washers were stuck in a scaffold dangling nearly 17 stories above Lower Manhattan. They had to be rescued by emergency personnel and were not seriously injured.
Construction Accidents Involving Scaffolding
According to the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), an estimated 2.3 million construction workers (65 percent of the construction industry), work on scaffolds. The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) estimates that protecting these workers from scaffold-related accidents may help prevent 60 deaths and 4,500 injuries each year and save U.S. employers $90 million in workdays not lost. In a recent BLS study, 72 percent of workers injured in scaffolding accidents attributed the incident to either the planking or support giving way or to an employee slipping or being struck by a falling object.
New York’s Scaffold Law
New York’s Scaffold Law (Section 240 of the New York Labor Law) requires contractors, property owners and/or property managers and their agents to be responsible for providing necessary equipment such as scaffolds, ladders, hoists, stays, irons, ropes, blocks braces and other devices to keep workers safe from fall-related accidents. Since this law was enacted in the early part of the 20th century, workers injured in scaffolding accidents have had the ability to bring civil actions against the contractor and property owner and/or property manager responsible for the safety of the jobsite.
Accidents like these are further reminders of why New York’s Scaffold Law should not be changed. A lobby of contractors, property owners and property managers and insurance companies has been fighting for the last few years against this law arguing that the law absolves workers of taking responsibility for their own actions and that it results in large payouts. But, as New York scaffolding accident lawyers, we believe that workers should continue to have the right to a safe jobsite and that contractors and building owners and building managers should be held responsible for any dangerous conditions on a construction site.
Scaffolding accidents may result in catastrophic injuries or even fatalities. Workers who fall off a scaffold may suffer devastating head injuries, multiple broken bones or even paralysis as a result of spinal cord trauma. Injured workers may not be able to return to their jobs for an extended period of time. Some victims who suffer these types of injuries may never be able to return to the jobsite or even earn a livelihood.
Compensation for Injured Workers
Workers who have been injured in a scaffolding accident can seek workers’ compensation benefits from their employer. In addition, they may be able to file a third-party claim as well and have two cases for recovering compensation. Such claims are filed for significant money damages against parties other than the employers including, but not limited to, general contractors, sub-contractors, building owners, building managers etc. In cases where a worker dies from the injuries he or she suffered on the job, surviving family members may seek death benefits through workers’ compensation and also by filing a wrongful death claim against a third party responsible for the fatal incident.
If you or a loved one has been injured in a construction accident, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you. For over 49 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. 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.
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Source: http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Stuck-Scaffold-Rig-Window-Wash-Lexington-Avenue-NYC-Police-Fire-East-Harlem-Upper-East-Side-380256931.html