21 incidents & 2 updates (9/26/11)

2011 Fatality Tracker 

Industrial

FATAL FALL NYC elevator repairman plunges to his death (an elevator repairman, 44, fell ten stories to his death while working on a disabled elevator in a building – he somehow lost his balance at about 10 a.m. and fell down the elevator shaft from the ninth floor of the 13-story building – he was not killed instantly by the fall but was in cardiac arrest when EMT personnel arrived on the scene – he was rushed to a Hospital, where he later died)

ELECTRICAL Phoenix APS worker severely burned (an employee was severely injured after coming into contact with electrical equipment – accident took place at a substation just before midnight – a male electrician was performing maintenance work on equipment that carried in excess of 345,000 volts when he came into contact with it – the worker was taken to a Burn Center with severe burns)

TIRE EXPLODES Worker injured after tire explodes at Syracuse rubbish removal company (a worker of a garbage removal service suffered minor injuries after a tire exploded at the facility – the worker reportedly suffered minor burns and was being evaluated at the hospital)

FATAL FALL from MANLIFT Worker falls to death at transit hub in Jamaica (a construction worker, 44, was killed in an accident that took place at the busy downtown transit hub – he died from serious head trauma after he fell from a lift apparatus at the underpass at 11:40 p.m. – the apparatus was struck by a Metropolitan Transportation Authority bus that was traveling north and the driver remained at the scene after the accident)

OIL WELL EXPLOSION Two Workers Injured in Texas Oil Well Explosion (an oil well explosion resulted in two injuries around 12:30 p.m. – crews working on the 25-year-old well created a spark, which ignited gas coming out of the well, starting a fire – two workers working near the well were burned – one was airlifted to a Medical Center, another was taken to an area hospital – their injuries are not believed to be life threatening – between five and six workers belonging to a contract crew were working on the well when the fire started – none of the other workers were injured)

ACETYLENE HOTWORK FIRE Tank catches fire in building (an acetylene tank caught fire in an industrial building – the individual tried to shut the tank off – the flames were two high – the fire started while a worker was grinding something he had just cut with a welding torch – the sparks from the grinder led to the tank fire – there was minimal damage and no injuries)

FIRE No Injuries After Explosion At Southern Union Gas Plant (there were no injuries after an explosion sparked a fire inside the plant around 11:00 – all employees were evacuated and accounted for – the fire was out by around 2:00 pm.- the cause of the fire will be investigated)

AMMONIA Fire-rescue crews contain small ammonia leak at Port of Palm Beach (fire-rescue crews have contained an ammonia leak inside a Port building – a small amount of ammonia was discovered leaking around 6:30 a.m. in the cold storage building – the leak was contained inside the building and there are no reports of injuries)

FORKLIFT FATALITY Man crushed to death by forklift (worker, 67, died when a forklift crushed him at a container yard – he was killed when a forklift he was working under fell on top of him – he was servicing the large forklift, used to move shipping containers, when the machine slipped from supports, crushing him – he had the front wheels off the machine and it was propped up by wooden blocks a metre square – it appeared the wooden blocks collapsed under the weight of the forklift – workmates at the yard used another forklift to lift the machine off him)

Construction

UPDATE on FATAL FALL from BRIDGE Worker fell to his death while painting Forth Bridge (worker, 52, fell 150ft through a gap after taking an unauthorised short cut to pick up his tools – he was one of a night gang of four men working for subcontractors who were stripping and painting the bridge)

FALL Worker injured in fall at Target construction site (a man, 61, working on the site of the new store was injured in a construction accident – he was working on the wiring in the sign when he stepped off a beam and fell about 12 feet – he was taken to a Hospital where he was listed in serious condition)

UPDATE on FALL Worker still in critical condition after fall (the construction worker, 58, injured at a Middle School last week remains in critical condition but is improving –  he fell 35 to 40 feet from scaffolding in the auditorium under construction)

FALL Beef Plant Worker Falls 25 Feet, Avoids Serious Injury (a worker helping build a beef packing plant fell off a structural beam, tumbling 25 feet to the ground – he was not seriously hurt in the fall – the accident happened as workers were going on break – he was taken to a nearby hospital and treated for injuries to his lip, chin and nose – he works for a company contracted to install electrical wiring and structural steel)

BULLDOZER FATALITY City Museum founder killed in bulldozer accident (Museum founder was found dead in a bulldozer at a property he was transforming into his latest attraction – co-workers found him, 61, dead inside the bulldozer’s cabin, which was enclosed by a metal grate – te bulldozer was upright – his body had visible trauma but did not elaborate – authorities say the construction vehicle rolled down a hill – it appeared the bulldozer had slid off a rocky hill and flipped a few times before landing upright)

CONCRETE POURING COLLAPSE 4 workers hurt in SM mall construction accident in General Santos City (four construction workers were reported injured when the third floor being built here collapsed while the workers were loading cement – all the four victims are currently confined in a hospital here for treatment – a portion of the third floor collapsed when the workers loaded wet cement – it crashed down up to the second floor pinning the workers below)

REBAR Three injured in construction accident (three construction workers were rescued from a pit after steel rebar fell on top of them – two of the victims were briefly pinned under 400 to 500 pounds of steel rebar – all three were taken to the hospital, all with arm and leg injuries – the injuries do not appear to be life threatening)

SCAFFOLDING COLLAPSE 1 Dead, 4 Injured in Scaffolding Collapse in S China City (one person has died and another four were injured after scaffolding collapsed at a construction site around 10 a.m. – five workers were buried under the collapsed scaffolding of a three-story building under construction – all five were pulled out alive and rushed to hospital – one died from injuries after treatment failed, while the other four are still in hospital but in a stable condition – the cause of the accident is still under investigation)

MIscellaneouS

HOT GREASE Burned restaurant worker leaves hospital (a worker, 22, who was severely burned by hot grease on Aug. 21, was released from the hospital – the restaurant worker was critically burned by a vat of grease when a 75-year-old woman lost control of her SUV and slammed into the building)

SCISSOR LIFT ELECTROCUTION Man Dead in Workplace Accident in Armstrong (lift comes in contact with wires, victim electrocuted – the worker, 18, died at an equipment rental shop, where the man was electrocuted – he died when the scissor lift he was working came in contact with some wires)

TURF CUTTING MACHINE FATALITY Probe after worker killed in turf cutting accident near Pocklington (worker, 30, has been killed in an accident involving a turf cutting machine)

WELDING BURNS Man burned in welding accident (the victim, 54, was welding when he suffered severe burns – he is in critical condition in a following the workplace accident – investigators are gathering information from the scene to try to determine what happened)