Another construction worker was killed by a falling piece of scaffolding in New York City, this time on a site on Riverside Drive in upper Manhattan. According to NBC New York, the city’s Department of Buildings (DOB) issued a stop-work order against the contractor at a high-rise building associated with Columbia University.
The tragic, preventable accident occurred on July 12 in the courtyard of International House, a well-known housing community for Columbia students. A 28-year-old worker from Staten Island was hit in the head by a beam that fell 12 stories; he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter at St. Luke’s Hospital, according to the NBC report.
Why are falling objects such a serious problem?
When you consider all the great technological advancements in recent decades, you’d think life would be safer for construction workers in the year 2018. But workers continue to die – and pedestrians continue to be injured — because of sloppiness and negligence on the part of contractors and builders.
In recent months, at least two other New York City workers were struck on the head with falling objects, with one of them sustaining fatal injuries and the other going into cardiac arrest. In February an eight-year-old bystander was hit on the head by a falling plank next to a construction site in Queens. In April three people were injured by a scaffolding collapse in Brooklyn, and last November five people were trapped under a pile of scaffolding in SoHo. These kinds of incidents are preventable, yet they happen all too frequently.
What you can do if an accident has affected your family
It’s disheartening to read stories like this and see disregard for the safety of workers and community members. But it’s life changing to experience an accident in your own family.
If you or someone you care about was hurt while working construction in New York, get legal advice right away. You may be entitled to money damages through a third-party injury or wrongful death claim.
