Three members of a construction crew suffered injuries after a work platform inside an elevator shaft gave way at a Brooklyn worksite the morning of June 15. According to a WABC news report, the elevator accident occurred at 170 Tillary Street in a building that is under construction. Officials said the investigation determined that three elevator mechanics were standing on a working platform inside the elevator shaft on the fourth floor when the platform gave way. The workers fell to the bottom of the elevator pit. All three workers were transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Residents told News 12 that they had not been using the elevator because it has been undergoing renovations since April. A work permit for the elevator was seen on the front of the building. The news outlet also reported that the workers suffered broken bones and that at least one of the workers broke his leg. The New York City Department of Buildings is investigating the incident and has said that enforcement actions are pending. Our thoughts and prayers are with the injured workers and we wish them the very best for a speedy and complete recovery.
Injuries and Fatalities in Elevator Shafts
According to statistics posted by The , incidents involving elevators and escalators kill about 30 and seriously injure about 17,000 people each year in the U.S. Elevators cause almost 90% of the deaths and 60% of the injuries in such cases.
Injuries to individuals operating on or near elevators, including those installing, repairing and maintaining elevators, and construction workers who are working in or near elevator shafts, account for almost half of the annual deaths. In addition, nearly half of construction worker deaths involving elevator shafts were because of falls down the elevator shafts. It is also worth noting that half of the deaths of workers who are operating near or in elevator shafts were due to falls into the shaft.
Fall Protection for Workers
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reports that 49% of deaths during work on or near elevators occurred because workers did not have proper fall protection. Under state and federal laws, workers are required to be provided with adequate fall protection such as scaffolding and guardrails.
Personal fall protection systems can also help prevent these deaths. A lot of construction activity in New York requires working from a height or elevation. Ironworkers, steelworkers, carpenters, masons, laborers or electricians usually need to work by using scaffolds, platforms, ladders etc. to carry out their tasks. OSHA regulations state that employers must provide fall protection such as guardrails, safety nets or harnesses when construction workers are operating at heights of 6 feet or greater above a lower level. Any floor cover must support a weight that is twice that of the load placed on it. The majority of falls at construction sites, according to OSHA, are entirely preventable.
When using personal fall protection systems such as harnesses, workers must be anchored to the structure at all times. Temporary structures on which workers are standing must be stable and strong enough to take the weight of the worker and should meet OSHA standards for scaffolds. A fall into an open shaft lacking adequate guardrails was an important factor, according to BLS, for a majority of construction worker fatalities involving elevator shafts.
Compensation for Injured Victims
Construction workers who have been injured in fall-related accidents may be eligible to receive workers’ compensation benefits, which covers medical expenses and a portion of lost wages. In addition, workers may also be able to file a third-party claim against a negligent (careless) party other than the employer or co-employees for significant monetary damages and have two sources of compensation available for their losses. Examples of third parties include, but are not limited to, general contractors, construction companies, sub-contractors, building owners, managing agents etc.
If you have suffered injuries in a construction-related 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.
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. Our law firm also recovered $3,000,000 for a man who fell and suffered two broken legs when he walked into an open elevator shaft. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
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 and medical malpractice cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been 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
Sources: https://abc7ny.com/brooklyn-elevator-accident-construction-drops-tillary-street/6248483/
http://bronx.news12.com/story/42248024/police-3-workers-hurt-after-falling-4-floors-on-elevator-shaft-in-downtown-brooklyn