Worker Killed in Times Square Construction Site Fall

 A 59-year-old worker was fatally injured in a New York construction accident after he fell from an I-beam. According to a report in the New York Daily News, the victim, a resident of Sunset Park, was working at the site located at 1604 Broadway and W. 49th Street when the mid-morning incident occurred. The victim was removing a part of a steel deck from a slab just before he fell off of the beam that was nearly at the height of the second floor.
He was rushed to a nearby hospital but died from his injuries shortly after. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of this worker. City officials have since stated that this Times Square accident was “completely preventable.” The New York City Buildings Commissioner announced that the victim was using personal protection equipment but that there were no tie offs to it. The Department of Buildings (DOB) has issued a stop work order at the site and is looking into whether a construction superintendent was present at the time, based on the news article.

Unsafe Work Conditions
The general contractor for this Times Square site has been identified as Streamline USA LLC. The city Buildings Commissioner also stated that the construction site’s conditions were unsafe and that their workers were being placed at an unacceptable amount of risk. Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA) inspectors had previously investigated this site after a complaint about unsafe job conditions in March 2016. OSHA at the time fined Streamline for multiple violations, seven of which were termed “serious.” Also last September, OSHA found another Streamline New York City job site in violation for not providing adequate scaffolding protection and fined the firm $17,746.
Work Related Fall Injuries
OSHA estimates that more than one third of all construction-related fatalities are the result of fall injuries. Based on statistics from the U.S. Bureau of Labor (BLS), 4,821 workers have been killed on the job in 2014. This amounts to over 92 victims a week or more than 13 deaths a day.
Worksites are required to ensure that safety measures are in place. This is to help prevent workers from falling off of overhead platforms and elevated workstations or into holes or shafts. OSHA requires that fall protection be provided at elevations of 4 feet in general industry workplaces, 5 feet in shipyards, 6 feet in the construction industry and 8 feet in long shoring operations. Fall protection must also be provided when workers are working over dangerous equipment and machinery, regardless of the fall distance.
Contractors and construction companies are responsible for securing their worksites and providing workers with fall protection devices such as safety harnesses and lines, safety nets, stair railing and handrails. Workers must also be given proper job training, safety training and proper supervision on the job.
Workers’ Compensation Benefits
The New York Workers’ Compensation Law is in place to provide services to diagnose, treat and rehabilitate an injured or ill worker requiring medical treatment. In such type of work-related injury incidents, an employer’s insurance should help pay for a victim’s medical expenses and a portion of his or her lost wages. Death benefits are available under law to the surviving spouse and/or minor children or other dependents in the event the worker is fatally injured. The family here may be entitled to weekly cash benefits in addition to other compensation.
Depending on the factors that led to the accident, a worker may also seek to pursue a third-party claim against negligent parties other than the employer or a co-employee for significant monetary damages. Examples of third parties include, but are not limited to, general contractors, construction companies, sub-contractors, building owners, managing agents etc. This third-party claim may be filed in addition to the claim filed for workers’ compensation benefits. This helps construction accident victims and families have two sources of compensation available for their losses.
An Experienced Lawyer Can Help You Get Compensated
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. Our knowledgeable work accident lawyers have 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.
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/construction-worker-takes-deadly-plunge-times-square-site-article-1.3048633