Construction Accidents Page #10
This page was last updated on 05/06/2010
ACCIDENT AT ST. PETER’S: CONSTRUCTION WORKER DIES
(AGI) – Rome, Italy, Sept. 1 – Workers were setting up a stage at St. Peter’s square, when they lost their balance and fell five meters. A 50-year-old worker died while a 38-year-old worker was rushed to the hospital and is in critical condition. The stage was being prepared for an upcoming ceremony to be held by the pope. (AGI)
Bridge worker drowns
By David Conti and Jim Ritchie TRIBUNE-REVIEW Saturday, August 30, 2003
A worker on the Fort Pitt Bridge construction project drowned in the Monongahela River Friday afternoon after falling out of a boat used to transport workers from a pier work site. The Allegheny County Coroner’s Office identified the victim as James Warren, 29, of Conneaut, Ohio, an employee of Cleveland-based L.M. Lignos Enterprises. Trumbull Corp., of West Mifflin, the contractor on the Fort Pitt Bridge and Tunnel rehabilitation, hired Lignos to handle the painting. “It’s a real tragedy, and our real concern is with the employee and his family,” Trumbull President George Mezey said. Mezey and PennDOT project manager Jim Foringer said this was the first major work-related accident on the decade-long project to rehabilitate the bridge, tunnel and nearby roads. It occurred as Trumbull is wrapping up work on its $84.2 million contract with PennDOT to overhaul the bridge and tunnel.
Trapped worker dies despite emergency response
By RYAN GILLIS, Journal Staff Writer 8/29/2003
WELLSVILLE — Emergency crews from around the area converged on Wellsville Thursday after a worker became trapped while digging near a gym on Wells Avenue extension. Despite the number of people responding to the accident scene, the victim did not survive. The county coroner’s investigator was at the accident scene and is investigating. Wellsville police deferred questions about the accident to the coroner’s office, but no one from that office could be reached for comment Thursday night. Investigators were releasing no details at the accident scene, but the man apparently was installing pipe near the Curves For Women gym at 557 Wells Avenue, when, according to unconfirmed reports, the hole he was working in collapsed around him. It is not clear if the man was working alone or as part of a team when the accident occurred. Unofficial reports at the scene suggested the man already was dead as firefighters worked to dig him out of the hole. Some could be seen lifting 5-gallon buckets of earth from the accident site. There was no sense of urgency in their actions. Drivers on state Route 7, which runs parallel to the Wells Avenue extension, were pulling over and stretching to get a better look across the highway at the group of police, firefighters and ambulance crews swarming between the gym and the Riverside Roadhouse. After what was at least two hours of digging, the victim’s body was removed from the hole and loaded into an ambulance. Almost simultaneously, calls went out for a medic as one of the firefighters at the scene succumbed to the heat and collapsed. Men and equipment from the Wellsville police and fire departments, Liverpool Township Fire Department, Follansbee Fire Rescue, Highlandtown and Irondale volunteer fire departments were working at the accident scene.
Construction Worker Hurt in Accident on Job
OLATHE, Kan. — A Kansas City Metropolitan Area construction worker was hurt Friday in an accident on the job. The 42-year-old man was in stable condition after he was pinned between a piece of construction equipment and a steel beam, KCTV5’s Robb Yagmin reported. It happened at about 11:40 a.m. as the man was working a new addition to a building at Garmin International in the 1700 block of South Mahaffie. He somehow got stuck between the basket on a crane and a steal beam. Some co-workers saw that something was wrong and lowered the boom to see what happened. The man was unconscious for about 30 seconds, and then medical personnel arrived. They rushed him to the hospital with a collapsed lung, which doctors re-inflated. He just started working for a company called Building Erection Services, a subcontractor for a general contractor called Turner Construction. Robb investigated the background of Turner Construction and found the Kansas City company had faced eight OSHA inspections in the state of Kansas since 1976 with one citation in 1993. In the state of Missouri, the company was cited four times for safety reasons in 2000, Robb reported on KCTV5 News at 4:30 p.m. The company paid a $10,000 fine, and three of the citations were deleted, he said. Officials didn’t know exactly how the accident happened because the man was under heavy sedation, but his boss said he was expected to be okay.
Man Dies In Fort Pitt Bridge Project Accident; Bridge Worker Falls From Boat
POSTED: 4:47 p.m. EDT August 29, 2003
PITTSBURGH — A man working on the Fort Pitt Bridge project fell from a boat and drowned Friday afternoon. The 29-year-old victim went to get on a safety boat from scaffolding under the bridge when the boat moved and caused him to fall into the Monongahela River. Pittsburgh river rescue crews pulled the man’s body from the river around 12:30 p.m. Friday. He was not wearing a life preserver. The man’s name has not been released. He was a worker with an Ohio-based company, L&M Lignos Enterprises. The company was subcontracted by Trumbull to work on the bridge. L&M Lignos has been cited by the Occupational Safety & Health Administration 20 times since 1992. The most serious incident was in 1992. A worker fell from scaffolding in Cleveland and died. OSHA is aware of Friday’s death and will inspect the site, but it is not known when officials will go to the area. Stay tuned to Channel 11 News for more on this story.
Construction worker injured in Olathe
A construction worker was critically hurt today while working on an expansion of Garmin International, 151st Street and Ridgeview Road in Olathe. The man suffered severe chest injuries about noon and was flown by Lifenet helicopter to a trauma center, said Jeff Johnson of Med-Act. Olathe Fire Department spokesman Mike Hall said the man’s injuries did not result from a fall. Hall declined to comment further. The man’s name was not released.
Falling steeling beam injures construction workers in Purcellville
By Scott Cissel 08/29/2003 Ties-Mirror Staff
Two construction workers doing renovations on an old bank building in Purcellville were struck and injured by a falling steel beam Thursday. Brent Ausherman, 26, of Rocky Ridge, Md., received serious injuries and was airlifted to Washington Hospital Center. His co-worker James Vines Jr., 48, had non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to Loudoun Hospital Center. The men were building an addition to the former bank, now an office building, in the 110 block of East Main Street.
New building on Iowa campus catches fire
By The Associated Press
IOWA CITY — A University of Iowa building with sections still under construction caught fire Friday, forcing the evacuation of a nearby residence hall and two other campus buildings. Investigators said the fire was caused when welding sparks ignited a tarp covering an exterior wall of the 58,000-square-foot Blank Honors Center. There were no reports of civilian injuries, but two firefighters were injured during the three hour battle to control the blaze. Extent of the injuries was not immediately available. Fire officials said Daum Hall, a dormitory designed to be connected to the new $14 million Blank building, was evacuated. The botany and chemistry buildings also were cleared and police also closed several downtown streets to traffic. Several area fire departments were called to the scene about 11:30 a.m. to assist Iowa City firefighters.
N.S. man killed in fall from roof
JOSEPH B. NADEAU , Staff Writer 08/29/2003
BELLINGHAM — A North Smithfield man suffered fatal injuries after falling from a roof at 710 Pulaski Boulevard Thursday. David R. Marchand, 45, of 10 Mill St., had been working on the roof of the three-story home at Pulaski and Brisson Street with other workers from Cote Remodeling Co., when the 2:19 p.m. accident occurred. “He appeared to trip on an air hose on the roof being used in the repairs, lost his balance and slid off the roof,” said Bellingham Police Sgt. Peter Lemon. The two-family home was reported to be undergoing a renovation involving the addition of third-floor living space, according to local officials. Marchand suffered severe neck and back trauma in the fall and was initially assisted by local rescue personnel, according to Lemon. A LifeFlight helicopter was called to the scene and a landing zone set up at the South Elementary School, Lemon said. But after the helicopter arrived, the victim’s worsening condition prompted the aircraft’s flight surgeon to recommend ground transport to Landmark Medical Center in Woonsocket, he said. Marchand was pronounced dead at Landmark after an examination in the hospital’s emergency room, he said. The owner of Cote Remodeling was at the scene at the time of the accident, as was the owner of the home, Lemon said. Family members were notified of the accident and responded to the emergency room, he said. The Police Department secured the job site and began an investigation. Participating in the review are the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), State Police Crime Scene Services, Worcester CPAC, and the town building inspector’s office, he said. Lemon said he could not say if any charges would result and noted that OSHA was leading the investigation. “OSHA is there, as we speak, taking measurements,” he said. The federal agency could not be reached for comment Thursday night.
Fire slows construction
Livingston Fire Department responded to an attic fire at the new apartments on Country Club Drive at 2:53 p.m. on Friday, August 15. Welders working on the apartments, which are not yet complete, accidentally started the fire and then left. Construction workers on the scene called 911. Livingston Fire Department was on the scene within three minutes. According to one firefighter, the attic was engulfed in flames when they arrived and smoke could be seen as far away as Lake LU and the Livingston Fire Department building. Firefighters that responded were Andy Slayton, Antoine Berry, Keith Booker, Dexter Johnson, Chris Scott, Park Edwards, Nancy Larkin, Russell Keene, Erik Shirley and ShyAnn Sasser. Public Safety officers that responded were Chief Ashley Welborn and Josette White. Hiram Patrenos and Brian Crawford own the new apartments, which have not been named yet. Patrenos said that he did not have a dollar figure as to the damage, but said that the fire would set construction back about two months.
Man saved from fallen ditch; Public safety officials seek criminal charges against injured worker
By Sasha Talcott, Globe Correspondent, 8/23/2003
As the construction worker sank deeper into a quicksand-like mixture of muddy water and silt, he spoke desperately of two things: his pregnant wife and his young daughter. Buried up to his chest in khaki-colored sludge, he struggled to pull himself out of the 11-foot-deep trench, begging firefighters to help him. But every time he moved, he slipped down deeper. Boston sewer workers started vaccuuming the liquid out of the trench and two firefighters leapt into it, digging at the sludge around him, which was thick and glue-like. Finally they were able to free him. ”We told him we weren’t going to get out of that hole unless we took him with us,” said firefighter Kevin Ranahan. ”The water was burying him.” The painstaking, nerve-wracking rescue near Dudley and Vine streets in Roxbury required 20 firefighters, emergency, and Boston Water and Sewer workers and took 2 1/2 hours. But the state Executive Office of Public Safety said the accident should never have happened. Commissioner Joseph Lalli said the offie plans to seek criminal charges against the injured worker, who they said was operating excavating machinery at the site without a license. The department is also weighing charges against the company in charge of the project, Free Flow Plumbing and Drain King, which was apparently replacing a sewer line at the scene. ”We have a man who was taken to the hospital with serious injuries,” Lalli said. ”There are going to be penalties all the way down the road. In today’s day and age, when we have made trench safety so important, there is no excuse.” Four Free Flow Plumbing and Drain King employees at the trench declined comment. A worker in the company’s office referred calls back to employees at the scene. It was about 11 a.m. yesterday when the worker, whose name has not been released, was digging near a sewer line at private property near the corner of Dudley and Vine streets in Roxbury. Suddenly, the trench began to sink, filling with water and sludge. Firefighters at the scene said they thought the injured worker or another employee ruptured the sewer line, though investigators are still determining what caused the collapse. When 24 emergency workers arrived, they found three workers in the rapidly filling trench, two attempting to pull the trapped worker to safety. The firefighters instructed two workers who were in a shallow part of the trench to get out, then fitted the trapped worker with an oxygen mask and attached him to a safety harness to prevent him from falling deeper. Even with the harness, the worker was practically glued to the bottom the trench, and firefighters feared they would tear his body into two if they tried to pull him out right away. ”He kept telling me, `Just get me out of here,’ ” said firefighter Bob Kilduff. A firefighter said the injured worker had been taken to Boston Medical Center. His condition was not available, but his injuries are not life-threatening, he said. Late yesterday afternoon, officials at the state’s public safety office were still trying to determine what had caused the accident. The office will also probe whether the trench, which firefighters said was about 4 feet deep before it sunk, should have had reinforcements to keep it from collapsing. Aaron Peterson, a trench specialist who works with the company United Rentals, said that the men should have reinforced the trench if they were going to be ducking down below ground level. Massachusetts law requires trenches deeper than 5 feet to have some kind of reinforcement, he said. ”It obviously wasn’t done, or else they wouldn’t have gotten hurt,” he said.
Crushed worker rescued after accident
Aug 22, 2003, 14:19:00
A Black Country worker was taken to hospital by air ambulance today after his legs were crushed by steel which fell on him. An air ambulance landed on a dual-cariageway in Brierley Hill after the 48-year-old man suffered injuries to both legs at J Barnsley Cranes. Emergency services were called to the Pedmore Road Industrial Estate at 11.33am. The helicopter flew the injured man to Selly Oak Hospital, Birmingham. Police stopped the traffic in Pedmore Road so that the helicopter could land near to a BP garage. An ambulance crew from Tipton was first on the scene. The injured worker had had both legs caught beneath a 30ft steel box section which had fallen on to him. His colleagues managed to lift the section that weighed more than two tons before a fire crew arrived on scene. He was given pain-killing drugs by paramedics until the air ambulance arrived. No one from the company was available to comment about the accident.
One injured, 12 homeless in South Heights fire; Fire started during construction work causes $25,000 in damage
BY PHIL ROCKROHR Times Staff Writer
SOUTH CHICAGO HEIGHTS — One man was injured, 12 people left homeless and $25,000 in damage caused when an apartment building caught fire behind Village Hall Friday morning. About 40 firefighters from at least 11 departments helped extinguish the fire at Eagle Ridge apartments, 3343 Commercial Ave., within 30 minutes, said Larry Nardoni, assistant fire chief of South Chicago Heights. The fire started when workers were soldering pipes in a vacant apartment on the second floor of the two-story building, said Brock Hanna, an owner of the complex. Don Nyblom, a maintenance worker at Eagle Ridge, suffered second- and third-degree burns to his hands trying to extinguish the fire, Hanna said. Nyblom was taken to St. James Hospital and Health Centers in Chicago Heights, Nardoni said. Hospital officials could not be reached for comment Friday afternoon. South Chicago Heights Fire Department received an emergency call about the fire at about 9:14 a.m., Nardoni said. “Our first unit arrived within minutes,” he said. “Smoke was coming off of the second floor, from two apartments on the south side of the building. Our people started to attack the fire, and we went to the box (alarm) level due to the heat.” Firefighters responded from Crete, Steger, Steger Estates, Sauk Village, Chicago Heights, Park Forest, Lynwood, Homewood, Flossmoor and University Park, Nardoni said. “Everybody else helped out,” he said. “Everybody got out of their apartments safely.” All of the 10 apartments at 3343 Commercial Ave. suffered smoke damage, and at least four suffered water damage, Nardoni said. Four of the apartments were destroyed and must be rebuilt, Hanna said. Firefighters had to cut a whole in a roof owners just recently installed, he said. Both Hanna and Nardoni estimated the damage at about $25,000. Hanna said he contacted the Red Cross to offer assistance to residents who were displaced. Hanna also offered to help them himself, if possible. Eight apartments must be vacated, he said. “Our tenants are not that well-to-do,” Hanna said. “Pretty much all their worthy possessions are here. I don’t know who has insurance. We’re going to try to help them the best we can.” Hanna said he will let residents out of their leases if they want to find new apartments while the damaged units are repaired. “They’re our customers,” he said. “We’ve gotten to know quite a few of them and we care about them. Some are very upset, as you can imagine.” Residents said they were confident Hanna and other owners would provide accommodations, if necessary. John Quantanilla, 34, whose apartment is next door to the one that caught fire, said he has relatives in South Chicago Heights, if the owners are unable to provide a place for him to stay. Juanita Robson, 58, and Kathy Manley, 54, who also live in the building, said they have renter’s insurance that should cover their losses. June Hanaman, 82, who lives on the first floor, said she does not have insurance, but owners of the complex offered to provide accommodations, if necessary.
UPDATE Hewden faces £16m bill over crane deaths
PERRY GOURLEY
HEWDEN Stuart, the Glasgow plant hire group, faces a damages bill of more than £16m after losing a legal case over a fatal accident. The Court of Appeal has rejected Hewden’s claim over the collapse of a crane at Canary Wharf in 2000, when three workers died. The case is seen as setting a precedent for the way contracts in the construction industry are set up. The appeal had been lodged after the Technology and Construction Court found last November that the company’s former subsidiary, Hewden Tower Cranes, was liable to pay damages to construction groups Cleveland Bridge and Yarm Road following the accident. Hewden appealed on the basis that they were not responsible, since the accident happened during an operation to increase the crane’s height by a process known as ‘climbing’, where extra sections are inserted into it. Roger Stewart QC, counsel for Hewden, argued that under the hiring contract, the erection of the crane which Hewden was responsible for did not include the increase in the height of the crane by climbing. He claimed that it was wrong to say that at the time of the collapse it was still being erected. But the construction firms argued that the climbing process formed part of the crane erection role which Hewden had been responsible for. The original cost of the claim was £8m, but it is now understood the total bill has risen to £16.6m. The damages figure – mainly made up of losses caused to the construction firms – will be considered at another court hearing. As well as the three fatalities, the 150-ton crane’s collapse caused serious injury to two other workers, extensive property damage and substantial delays and disruption to the construction works. It is thought Hewden is considering an appeal against the judgment, which could see it take the case to the House of Lords. The company was not available to comment. The crane was working on the 44-storey HSBC headquarters building at Canary Wharf in Docklands when the accident happened. It was one of five tower cranes hired from Hewden by the construction firms. In their judgment, the appeal court judges stressed there was no implication that the accident was due to actions by Hewden staff, and that the cause of the accident was as yet unknown. The Health and Safety Executive is still investigating the incident, and earlier this year issued an industry discussion paper on the safe use of climbing frames on tower cranes, prompted by the accident. Hewden sold the tower cranes unit to PC Harrington in October last year in a deal thought to be worth £16m, but liability over the court case remained with the Scottish firm. The latest figures show the company made a pre-tax profit of £40.4m last year – a 12% rise on the previous year on turnover up by 4% to £262m. The company’s managing director, Paul Jarvis, recently left his Scottish post after almost three years to become head of the power systems division of Finning, based in Vancouver, Canada. He has been replaced by Nick Lloyd, who was head of Finning UK until 1999 and has recently been running the Canadian group’s business in Chile. Last month the company bought Jersey-based tool hire firm Blandin Light Plant in a £1m deal which it said would move it close to a 30% United Kingdom market share. Hewden Stuart was bought in 2001 by Finning in a £322m agreed takeover deal. The company was founded in 1968 through the merger of Hewden Plant, led by Matthew Goodwin and Frank Jamieson, and Stuart Plant, headed by Ronald Stuart. The firm, which floated at the time of the merger, became the United Kingdom market leader in plant hire.
Crane collapse crushes 5 cars, large truck in Fort Lauderdale
By Shannon O’Boye sun-sentinel.com August 21, 2003, 2:59 PM EDT
FORT LAUDERDALE — A large construction crane collapsed on Thursday, crushing five cars and a flatbed truck parked on the ground far below. No injuries were reported. Witnesses said there was no warning. Some compared the sound of the collapse, which lasted for 15 to 20 seconds, to an earthquake. The collapse of the crawler crane occurred around 9:40 a.m. on the 500 block of Northeast Second Avenue where a five-story apartment building is being built. It was not immediately known what caused the accident, which involved a 135-foot tall tower and a 150-ton crane with a 140-foot-long boom, or luffing jib. A sign on the crane said Sims Crane. The crane operator, who was not immediately identified, was lifting a large load of forms when the collapse occurred. He was not injured, but the load of forms, described as the size of a railroad car, dropped to the street below. No other details were immediately available.
Construction Worker Survives 60-Foot Fall Down Cliff
MARION COUNTY, Fla. — A Marion County construction worker is recovering after he fell down a 60-foot cliff. It happened around 10 o’clock Thursday morning at Alliance Construction Materials northwest of Ocala. The man wasn’t seriously hurt. The 60-foot drop was steep and covered with cinderblocks. Charles McCrone was supposed to be dumping the blocks. Instead, he and his front-end loader went in. His boss says he never should have been using equipment this heavy. The drop didn’t crush the passenger cabin. So, McCrone pried himself from the mangled mess and made it half way up the 80-degree incline. Then he ran out of gas. That’s when the technical rescue team arrived. “My initial reaction was how lucky the patient appeared to be, that he was awake and alert and oriented,” says rescuer Derek Bracewell. Three rescuers used an elaborate system of ropes to repel down to McCrone. They say he was happy to see them. “He was in good spirits. He just wanted to get out of there, get out of that situation,” says rescuer Scott Ramage. The rescuers used something called a Stokes basket. They strapped him in tightly so he couldn’t move much, in case he broke his back or neck, while the firefighters gingerly moved McCrone into the basket on the steep cliff. The cinder block footing couldn’t have been less stationary. Rescuers say many of their steps sent the blocks tumbling to the bottom. “If you’re not 100 percent on your game, you’re going to the bottom, just like the front-end loader,” says Bracewell. Once McCrone was strapped in, it was up to another team on level ground. They were able to get McCrone safely to the top and on to a hospital. The Marion County firefighters involved go through hundreds of hours of training for rescues like these.
Construction worker dies after collapsing at college
08/21/03 Staff Report
A construction worker collapsed Tuesday while working on a project at Spring Hill College and later died, college officials said. Juan O. Casilla, 47, who lived in Gastonia, N.C., was pronounced dead at Springhill Medical Center following his 3 p.m. collapse, according to Greg Walker, a spokesman for the college. Casilla, originally from Mexico, was working on a concrete project on the third floor of the structure. He had to be removed from the library by crane. Casilla was employed by a subcontractor, Walker said Tuesday.
Worker rescued from hole
By LEN MANIACE THE JOURNAL NEWS (Original publication: August 21, 2003)
RYE — Emergency crews yesterday rescued a masonry worker who was trapped in a nearly 9-foot-deep hole for more than 2 1/2 hours after the excavation walls collapsed. Joseph Malone of Port Chester was hoisted from the hole at 12:40 p.m. alongside a home at 140 Soundview Ave., where he had been making waterproofing repairs to a foundation, Police Commissioner Williams Connors said. Malone, said to be in his 60s, is employed by Ox Masonry of Greenwich, Conn. Malone was buried only to his waist, but the rescue was a painstaking one because officials feared the narrow hole, which measured approximately 2 feet by 5 feet, would collapse further. “All he said was ‘Get me out’ and ‘Be careful,’ ” said police Officer Julio Rossi, among the first emergency workers to arrive. Malone was taken to Westchester Medical Center in Valhalla, but a report on his condition was not available; a spokeswoman cited the new federal medical privacy law. Malone appeared to be in good condition when he was removed from the hole, Connors said. Dozens of emergency workers from Rye, Port Chester, New Rochelle and Greenburgh participated in the elaborate effort. Malone was quickly placed in a harness that hung from the end of a firetruck ladder that extended over the hole, while workers used wood planks to shore up the hole against further collapse. Malone was given an air mask to help with his breathing, a fan blew fresh, cooling air into the hole and he was later given intravenous fluids to prevent dehydration. Various pumps, excavation equipment and additional rescue workers stood ready in a front yard, where black-eyed Susans, phlox and marigolds bloomed. Emergency trucks waited on Soundview Avenue, a dead-end street off Boston Post Road adjacent to the Rye Golf Club. Overhead, three helicopters from television stations hovered. Because the hole was so small, Malone had to help with his own rescue, using a small shovel to remove some of the soil that pinned him. The mishap is under investigation by the federal Occupation, Safety, and Health Administration and the Rye Building Department, Connors said. The accident might have been prevented, Connors said, if the sides of the deep and narrow hole had been shored up before Malone and another worker began the waterproofing job. The other worker was not in the hole at the time of the collapse. “That’s how these things happen,” Connors said. “They take a chance; they don’t think about the danger.”
Fire breaks out in Delhi cinema hall
Wednesday, 20 August , 2003, 16:08
New Delhi: A minor fire broke out on Wednesday at a cinema hall being demolished for Delhi Metro construction in West Delhi. The fire erupted in the sound-proofing system of Vivek Cinema in Patel Nagar area at 0900hrs Wednesday morning. The cinema hall was vacant as it was being demolished for the construction of Barahkhamba-Dwarka metro line and hence there were no casualities. “Fifteen fire tenders immediately rushed to the spot as it was a fire in the hall and they worked till 1320hrs to ensure that the blaze was completely put down,” fire department sources told UNI. They said that the fire broke out when the metro workers were carrying out welding in the empty cinema hall. However, according to Delhi Metro spokesman Anuj Dayal the minor fire broke out in the sound-proofing system of the hall and it was ‘brought under control within five minutes.’
UPDATE Kentucky Construction Worker Dies After Accident
Man Suffers Injuries Monday
A Kentucky road worker has died from injuries he suffered while working on a street in Villa Hills, Ky., a suburb of Cincinnati. Frank Chandler, 58, of Independence, Ky., was standing between two trucks on state Route 8 Tuesday morning when one of them was hit by an oncoming car. Chandler got trapped in the middle. The driver of the car has not been charged.
Under construction medical college building roof caves in
KOCHI: The roof of the power station building of the Kochi Cooperative Medical College (CMC), Kalamassery, being constructed, caved in on Tuesday night, allegedly after some outside elements removed supporting poles at the site. Work on the roof was completed at around 5 p.m. on Monday and it collapsed at around 1 a.m. on Tuesday. It is alleged that an ongoing dispute between the construction company and some outside forces over the awarding of a sub-contract had led to the `sabotage’. The construction company has now registered a complaint with the Kalamassery police for arresting those behind the antisocial act. Cooperation Minister M V Raghavan, however, has issued directions to continue with the works so as to complete them before September. Co-operative Academy of Professional Education project engineer, P J Jose Maria, who is in charge of the construction activities at CMC, said that there is no possibility of an accident occurring due to technical problems. He refuted allegations that the supporting poles did not have the sufficient strength to hold the concrete mixture. If the poles did not have sufficient capacity, they would have collapsed when several workers were carrying out the works on top of the ceiling, he said. “It takes around two hours for the concrete mixture to settle initially and eight hours to settle finally. During this time, the weight decreases and there is no possibility of roof collapse due to technical reasons,” he added. Several persons, with the backing of various political leaders, had approached the college authorities requesting to award them sub-contract for the works. The construction company had to turn away several people as they could not meet the eligibility criteria. Kalamassery Municipal councillor, P P Ramakrishnan, who represents the ward where the medical college is coming up, expressed doubts over the whole episode. “The contractor removed the debris soon after the roof collapsed. If there was any foul-play, they would have conducted an investigation,” he said. Shilpy Constructions Managing Director F Edision said that the works have to be completed by September and here was not much time to wait for an investigation. There were several attempts from `outside forces’ to disrupt the works. Someone might have purposefully removed the poles of the ceiling to tarnish the image of the construction company and delay the works, he said. According to the present plan, work on the four blocks, including the administrative block, would be completed by September. The construction company will concentrate on two out-patient departments and a teaching block after that. The Rs 50-crore construction work is expected to be completed by the end of this academic year and the medical college with 500-bed capacity will become operational by that time. Meanwhile, the dispute between the Co-operative Medical College and the Kalamassery Municipality over the permit fee for the construction is still continuing. Earlier, Kalamassery Municipal Chairman had stayed the construction and later allowed to resume the work, till a final decision is taken by the Local Administration Ministry. SECURITY TIGHTENED: Following the collapse of the roof, the medical college authorities have decided to strengthen the security arrangements at the spot, especially during night. At present there is only one security guard and two more persons will be deployed with immediate effect. Steps would also be taken to complete the compound wall immediately, they said.
Crane tips over; causes minor injuries
By Bill Bryan Post-Dispatch 08/18/2003
Two construction workers were injured at about 7:30 a.m. today when a crane tipped over into a building site where they were working. The accident occurred in the Park View Estates subdivision on Kiefer Creek Road in Ellisville, police said. The injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, said Ellisville Police Chief Wayne Prince. One workman sustained a cut on his leg and was taken to St. John’s Medical Center in Creve Coeur. The other workman had a bloody nose and a back injury; his status was unclear, Prince said. The two men were on the second floor of an apartment building under construction and were receiving a pallet of plywood from a crane when the crane tipped over and struck the building, Prince said. The crane’s stabilizer legs had not been spread out, Prince said.
Mason dies after falling 10 feet at construction site
Tuesday, August 19, 2003 Daily News staff
A construction worker died after falling about 10 feet Monday afternoon in East Naples, officials with the Collier County Sheriff’s Office said. The worker was identified as 40-year-old Gumaro Rodriguez of 478 Mississippi Ave., Fort Myers. Sheriff’s officials said Rodriguez fell at 12:37 p.m. Monday at 3919 Forest Glen Blvd. and was pronounced dead by paramedics. Rodriguez worked as a mason for a construction company. Investigators said Rodriguez was moving concrete blocks on the second story of a home under construction when he fell through an opening in the floor and struck his head. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the government agency that oversees workplace safety, was notified Monday. An OSHA representative was expected to arrive in Collier County sometime Monday to investigate, officials said. Officials said they did not know the name of the company for which Rodriguez worked.
No injuries in Thursday fire
A structure fire Thursday afternoon near Seafield resulted in property damage but no injuries. At approximately 1:15 p.m. Thursday, the Wolcott Fire Department responded to a report of a fire in a swine barn at the Irvin and Shirley Furrer farm, County Road 2357 N-600 W, about a mile north of US 24 and two miles east of Wolcott. The Reynolds Volunteer Fire Department and Remington Volunteer Fire Department responded with tanker and pumper trucks and mutual aid. According to Wolcott Assistant Fire Chief Jack Buntin, the floor of the building was being redone, so no animals were inside the building at the time of the fire. The fire is believed to have been caused by a stray spark from a welder, he said. “They took all the precautions they could,” said Wolcott Assistant Chief Jack Buntin. “It was just one of those freak things.” No damage estimate was available Thursday.
Worker dies after fall in Talcher
ANGUL, Aug. 17. — In yet another fatal accident, a 35-year-old contractual worker Srikanta Kumar Lenka died after falling down from a height of 40 m at a bunker located at Unit-4 of Talcher-Kaniha Power Project. He was working as a welder in Endfab Company, engaged in construction of Talcher Super Thermal Power Project. He had no safety belt despite repeated warning to the agencies, police said. The incident occurred on Saturday. Injuries on his head, he succumbed on way to hospital. — SNS
Worker Injured In Scaffolding Collapse Dies; Officials Investigate Cause Of Scaffolding Collapse
POSTED: 1:39 p.m. EDT August 15, 2003
MADISON, N.C. — A worker critically injured when scaffolding on a Rockingham County water tower collapsed has died, authorities said Friday. The man who fell was identified as Pedro Hernandez Encarnacion, 34. He was flown to Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center, where he died, according to a hospital spokeswoman, who wouldn’t say when the death occurred. Two other men dangling from ropes when the scaffolding fell Thursday later were rescued by emergency workers at the tower, located at the intersection of U.S. 220 and N.C. 704 just east of Madison, according to authorities. One of the workers who dangled from the scaffolding, identified as Victor Estrada, 35, was taken to Moses Cone Hospital in Greensboro. A hospital spokesman said Estrada was in good condition Friday with minor injuries. The second worker didn’t require treatment. The cause of the scaffolding collapse was unclear Thursday.
Cave-in Accidents Kill 4,Injure 13 in NE Province
Four people were confirmed dead Sunday as a result of cave-in accidents at two construction sites in this capital of the northeastern province of Heilongjiang Saturday. The accidents, which occurred almost simultaneously around 19:30 Saturday, also injured 13 people and trapping more. Quite a few builders were working in the subbasement of Renhe Century Square project when an accident occurred, killing three people and injuring eight. Witnesses heard a rolling sound before the ground with an area of some 50 square meters suddenly caved in and saw some passers-byfalling into the sunken area. The exact number of people trapped underground and causes for the accident are still under investigation. The other accident in Harbin Engineering University killed one person and injured five. Officials from the Heilongjiang Provincial Government and Harbin City Government are coordinating rescue efforts at the accident sites.
GAS LEAK QUICKLY CONTAINED; AFTER WORKERS SNAG LINE
STAFF August 15, 2003
A gas leak on North Grand Street, caused when workers moved a construction refuse bin was quickly contained, city officials said. The accident occurred around noon when Tyler Solid Waste workers were removing a temporary construction container, or roll-off box, from 1010 N. Grand St., where PSC Construction was working on a house. “When we pulled the roll-off box it hung up on the gas line,” said Todd Lestage, Tyler Solid Waste special projects coordinator. “We immediately called the gas company and the fire department got there and everything got taken care of.” Lestage said the city places the container where the contractor wants, and the gas line was only about 8 to 10 inches underground at that location. No injuries were reported.
UPDATE Truck fire claims life of 2nd man; Survivor recalls spilled lacquer
By John Tuohy and Tom Spalding August 14, 2003
A second man has died of injuries he suffered when a paint truck caught fire on I-465 late last month. Officials said Otis Turner, 46, Indianapolis, died Tuesday in a Fort Wayne hospital, where a few of the burn victims were taken. Eight co-workers remained hospitalized Wednesday, and three have been released. Meanwhile, one of the men injured in the inferno said Wednesday that painting crew members were smoking in the tightly packed vehicle when the fire started. “There were a few of us smoking, I’m sure. You know, (because) we all smoke,” said painter Tom McElroy, 26, who was released Wednesday from Methodist Hospital. He was interviewed by The Indianapolis Star’s news-gathering partner, WTHR (Channel 13). Indiana State Police are investigating whether any of the 13 painters who were crowded in the back of the truck are criminally responsible for causing the blaze. Police said the investigation was focusing on the intent of the person whose cigarette or lighter caused the fire. The men were seated in the cargo area, where paint supplies were stored. The fire occurred July 29. “Was it the innocent lighting of the cigarette or was it something else?” State Police Sgt. Dave Bursten asked. Investigators have to determine whether the person who started the fire knew there was a reasonable chance his action could result in injury. If so, charges could be brought against him. McElroy said he believed the fire was simply an accident. “No, it wasn’t nothing intentional,” he said. “Not to my knowledge, it wasn’t nothing intentional, anyway.” McElroy, who suffered second- and third-degree burns on his legs, hands, arms, shoulder and face and has undergone skin grafts, said the fire started when a can of lacquer spilled. “I remember the flames going up and me trying to get out of there,” he said. He is recovering at home. It could be months before the State Police investigation is complete, Bursten said. The pace has been slow because fire investigators and police have been unable to interview most of the painters, many of whom face long hospital stays and multiple surgeries. Six of the eight who remain hospitalized are in critical condition. The men worked for RPT Painting of Franklin. The blaze ignited as the truck was traveling south on I-465 on the Southwestside. Allen County Deputy Coroner Ralph Taylor said Turner died at 2:30 p.m. Tuesday in St. Joseph Hospital in Fort Wayne. The preliminary cause of death was undetermined burn injuries, Taylor said. Turner was single and had no children. He grew up in Saginaw, Mich., where he worked for years as a welder, said his sister, Inez Tyson, of Saginaw. “He was a great brother,” said Tyson, 47, one of four siblings in the family. “He had this great big smile and was a very giving person.” She said she was angry about the circumstances of her brother’s death. “I think it was terrible to have them all crammed in back there with all those chemicals and no ventilation,” she said. Two of the victims, Daniel Maple, 32, and J.R. Bryant, 20, both of Indianapolis, are suing RPT, alleging that negligence by the company led to the fire. Another victim, John W. Webster III, 30, Greenwood, died July 29, the fire’s first fatality. Besides McElroy, two others, Josh Littleton, 27, and Charlie Newell, 18, both of Indianapolis, have been released from hospitals.
Update Dump truck driver won’t be charged in death of worker
Associated Press
GAFFNEY, S.C. – A dump truck driver who struck and killed a worker at a road construction site will not be charged, the Highway Patrol says. Buford Phillips, 57, was backing up a state-owned dump truck hauling 8 tons of asphalt Monday morning when he hit 46-year-old David Allen Stapleton, a flag man for the state Transportation Department. Phillips said the alarm that was supposed to sound when he backed the truck up was not working when he struck Stapleton. The alarm was working when his shift began, Phillips said. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the accident, spokesman Jim Knight said. The agency requires certain vehicles at construction sites to have an alarm that sounds when the truck is in reverse, Knight said. Those alarms must be tested regularly, he said. Information from: Herald-Journal
Two Hurt in Gas Line Accident; Fire department says plumbing crew caused pipe to blow up
By Mark Hall
Two Shoreline Plumbing workers were injured Wednesday after they accidentally ignited as natural gas line between 1995 and 2005 Moyo Drive. According to the Lake Havasu City Fire Department, the workers were sweating a water line with a torch. Believing that an adjacent pipe was a water bubbler line, they continued their work until the line blew up. River Medical transported one worker to Havasu Regional Medical Center for moderate burns he suffered to the face and hands, fire personnel said. The other worker stayed at the scene. Flames spewed out of the hole in the ground from 8:33 to 10:10 a.m., before UniSource Energy Services (formerly Citizens Arizona Gas) workers and firefighters smothered the flames with water and clamped the gas line. The hole was located south of two apartment buildings that were evacuated by the fire department. Workers attempted to gain access to the line by digging a hole into the pavement on Moyo Drive, which was located in front of the leak. However, they were unable to find the line, therefore the smother and clamp procedure was executed. While flames spewed out of the ground, firefighters sprayed nearby vegetation to prevent it from being damaged by the heat.
Worker Rescued From Largo Metro Project; Steel Beam Hits Man In Tunnel
LARGO, Md. — Emergency workers in Prince George’s County pulled off a tricky rescue Thursday. A large steel beam was being moved by a crane when it struck a construction worker. He was injured and trapped in a large trench the site of the future MetroRail Blue Line track to Largo. Rescuers went down into the trench and treated the man. Then they removed him from the area using a rescue basket and a crane. The injured man was taken to an area hospital for treatment.
Two rescued from Commerce trench collapse
(Commerce-AP) — Two men were rescued in Commerce Thursday morning after a trench they were working in collapsed. The men’s names were immediately released. Commerce Police say the two were repairing sewer lines in a 10-foot trench behind a bank when the walls caved in. Commerce is located in the Tar Creek area where sink holes and mine collapses have occurred after years of lead and zinc mining.
Prince William school catches fire during construction
Associated Press August 14, 2003
HAYMARKET — A high school under construction in Prince William County caught fire when a worker accidentally ignited foam insulation on the roof. A plumber using a cutting torch lit the petroleum-based insulation at about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, said Battalion Chief C. Hadden Culp of the Prince William Department of Fire and Rescue. It took 60 firefighters from Prince William, Loudoun, Fauquier and Fairfax counties and Manassas one hour to control the fire, which destroyed a stack of insulation and charred the roof. The side of the building sustained heavy smoke stains. Damage costs were not available. The unnamed school is in the Dominion Valley area north of Haymarket. A high school under construction in Woodbridge also caught fire in May when a worker accidentally ignited foam insulation. Part of the roof at that school was destroyed. No one was hurt in either fire.
UPDATE AGL fined $100,000 over electrocution
Energy retailer AGL Electricity was fined $100,000 for safety breaches which led to the electrocution of a 36-year-old Melbourne carpenter. Paul Psaila received a fatal electric shock when he touched a piece of metal carrying a 240-volt current from a live electricity cable attached to the garage roof of a suburban Rosanna home unit on February 9, 1999. But outside the court, the victim’s widow, mother of three daughters Marie Psaila, said she thought the punishment “grossly inadequate, given that what happened cost my darling Paul his life”. But she said even if the firm had been fined the maximum of $250,000, it still would not be enough. “There is no adequate (monetary) penalty for a company like AGL — the true punishment is in the conviction.” She said her youngest daughter, the then four-year-old Madeleine, who witnessed the accident needed psychotherapy treatment for two years and suffered from post traumatic stress disorder. Judge Michael Strong in the Victorian County Court said work on installing the cable had been carried out by two qualified and experienced linesmen seven weeks before Mr Psaila died. “On this occasion the job was done incompetently,” the judge said. Insulation on the cable became damaged and a metal bracket “charged with electricity became a death trap”. Mr Psaila died when he touched the bracket. The judge said the two linesmen, who were not charged with any offence, were men of experience and their work involved, or should have involved, checking the connection. There was a need for electricity suppliers to realise that linesmen, however competent and experienced, will occasionally make mistakes with potentially lethal consequences, Justice Strong said. It was clear that what was lacking was an independent system of inspection, the judge said. “The court must respond to the jury’s verdict by sending a clear message to this industry that more rigorous scrutiny is required of work by linesmen,” he said. AGL was last week convicted by a jury of failing to ensure that people other than its employees were not exposed to health and safety risks. The maximum fine for the offence is $250,000. The judge said it would be wrong to impose the maximum sentence because the breaches were not “blatant”. After the sentencing, WorkSafe Victoria executive director John Merritt said: “This case supports WorkSafe’s proposition that it is practicable to have a system for auditing and inspecting the installation of power cables and that doing these things can save lives.” “Our concern is that this is a real public safety issue. In this case, the actions of AGL Electricity put others at risk and resulted in a man dying.” A spokeswoman for AGL said the company had no comment to make on the sentencing remarks made by the judge.
Ivy Tech Construction Worker Injured
Web Producer: Kerry Corum
A construction worker was hurt after cutting through a live electrical wire at Evansville’s Ivy Tech State college. The unidentified worker was taken to the hospital for observation. He works for a Michigan company, and company officials say the injuries are not life threatening. Authorities were told, the man was cutting through wiring in the ceiling of a building that’s being rennovated, when the accident occured.
UPDATE Judge: Contractor liable in pedestrian bridge collapse
August 13, 2003, 3:43 PM EDT
UTICA, N.Y. — The general contractor working on a pedestrian bridge that collapsed last October, killing one construction worker, is liable for injuries suffered by another worker, according to a court ruling. A decision last week by State Supreme Court Justice Robert Julian found that Department of Transportation employee Theodore Fox Jr. fell 30 feet from an elevated work site that did not have required safety devices. The bridge wasn’t properly shored and braced to prevent its collapse, Julian said. That makes Tioga Construction Co. of Herkimer liable for Fox’s injuries under New York State Labor Law, Julian ruled in a decision released Tuesday. Fox and seven others were injured when the 170-foot bridge twisted, buckled and collapsed 20 feet to the ground on Oct. 10. Fox is suing Tioga for $70 million. According to his lawsuit, Fox broke his pelvis, dislocated his right shoulder and broke a bone in his left arm. Another worker, Scott Couchman, died in the collapse. Terence Hannigan, the lawyer for Tioga, said the company disagreed with Julian. “This isn’t a situation where these people weren’t given proper safety equipment,” Hannigan said. “This is a case in which the structure they were hired to build failed through no fault of Tioga or the men and woman standing on it.” Hannigan said he expected to appeal. Seven other lawsuits by those injured in the collapse have been filed in the Court of Claims in Albany. They range from $25 million to $50 million. In New York, workers’ compensation law prevents a worker from directly suing his employer in cases such as the bridge collapse. That means Fox couldn’t sue the state since he worked for DOT. The plans for the pedestrian bridge have been scrapped. It was part of a highway project about 45 miles east of Syracuse. The bridge was being built over a new section of a four-lane highway, a project that started in the late 1970s and is expected to be completed next year.
UPDATE Workers recover bulldozer from park lake
People leaned against trucks and lined up lawn chairs Tuesday morning to watch the recovery of a 20-ton bulldozer from the south lake of the former Hallett’s Quarry. And as thick cables from three heavy-duty wreckers hauled the rig out of 30 feet of water some 50 feet from the shoreline, the joke of the day was the big fish that could be caught at the new Ada Hayden Heritage Park. It was during construction of the new park that the accident occurred Monday morning. David Wood, an employee of Peterson Contractors, Inc. of Reinbeck, was using the bulldozer to push a boulder down the bank of the lake when he came too close to the edge and lost control. City officials say the bulldozer went under water with Wood in the cab. He was able to free himself and swim to the surface without injury. Wood’s age and hometown are unknown. Cordell Peterson, owner of Peterson Contractors, was unavailable for comment. Employees at the company’s headquarters and at the recovery site also declined comment. Tuesday’s ecovery took hours. A diver went down, then marked the site of the rig with a small buoy about 50 feet from shore. A skiff was sent out to stretch the finger-thick cables, then a diver attached the cables to the bulldozer. The three wreckers worked together to drag the bulldozer to shore. “It was really in there good,” said Jim Hanifen, owner of Hanifen Inc., of Des Moines. “It as at a 45-degree incline, and pulled up a lot of concrete and other (debris).”Hanifen said this was not the first time he has orchestrated an underwater rescue. The cost of the recovery will be less than $5,000, he said. Peterson Contractors is responsible for all recovery costs. The bulldozer, a Caterpillar D6R tractor, has a standard operating weight of 40,400 pounds, according to Caterpillar, Inc., offices in Peoria, Ill. The cost of the basic machine is between $220,000 to $225,000. Official details of the accident are still unclear, since the first emergency call Monday was placed to Story County Sheriff’s Office instead of th mes Police Department, which has jurisdiction in the area. The first vehicles on the scene were Gilbert First Responders and county deputies. By the time an Ames officer arrived, the scene had cleared, according to Loras Jaeger, Ames Chief of Police. “There was some confusion,” Jaeger said. “Not all the (Story County) deputies realize that is our area.”
Gas line accident Portland forces evacuations
By SOPHIA TAREEN The Courier-Journal
More than two dozen people were evacuated from their homes this morning after construction workers hit a gas line in the Portland neighborhood, according to Capt. Ronel Brown of Louisville Fire & Rescue. About 9:30 a.m. workers for Tom Brown Construction Inc., who were working on 19th Street near Duncan Street, accidentally hit a two-inch plastic gas line, said Doug Bennett, a spokesman for Louisville Gas and Electric Co. The contractor, working for Louisville Water Co., was putting in a new water service for an apartment building in the area, said Barbara Crow a spokeswoman for the water company. Louisville Fire and Rescue evacuated homes within a block of the gas line break, Brown said. Residents, many in their pajamas, waited outside for about an hour and half while LG&E worked on installing a replacement gas line. Dominique Miller, who lives in a house at 303 N. 19th St., adjacent to the site of the break, said that she was sleeping when she heard a loud noise about 9:30 a.m. She said she evacuated a couple of minutes later.
Roof work sparks fire at SE Portland school
08/13/03 LYS MENDEZ
Fire investigators say a four-alarm fire Monday at Binnsmead Middle School was started by roofing contractors using a propane torch to apply roofing materials. Jack Finders, spokesman for the Portland Fire and Rescue Bureau, said the fire smoldered for several hours before burning through the roof. Because the fire was confined to the auditorium roof, school will start as scheduled on Sept. 3, said Lew Frederick, Portland Public Schools spokesman. Finders said the fire did $1.5 million in structural damage plus $300,000 in damage to the contents of the Southeast Portland school. Most of the damage inside the auditorium was caused by water. This was the seventh school fire, some intentionally set, in the Portland and Vancouver areas in the past year. Portland schools are self-insured, but Frederick said MacDonald Welte, the roofing contractor, is expected to cover the costs of this fire. Construction crews were working on a $2 million project to repair the roof at Binnsmead and were almost done with the auditorium, said Pam Brown, director of facilities at the school. Brown said two months’ worth of work on the auditorium was lost. Workers had attached flashing to the roof, heating it with torches to make the self-adhesive backing stick, before leaving the site at 3 p.m. Monday. The Fire Bureau received a call about the fire at 6:10 p.m. and arrived at 2225 S.E. 87th Ave. in four minutes. Only two small classrooms and office space in the back of the auditorium were damaged, making it unlikely that the school year will be delayed, Frederick said. “We still have to determine how safe the school is,” he said. “We have to do air monitoring and check the structure, but this will be taking place over the next few days.” About 770 sixth- through eighth-graders attend the school. About 45 percent speak English as a second language, presenting school officials with the challenge of sending out notices to families who speak more than 22 languages, Frederick said. A hot line will be available for parents who want information about the fire in the five primary languages of the school: English, Spanish, Cantonese, Russian and Vietnamese. Frederick said Monday’s school fire has caused the most damage, surpassing the $1 million in damage caused by a fire at Lent Elementary in Southeast Portland on Feb. 17. The cause of that three-alarm fire was determined to be arson. No arrests have been made in connection with the Lent fire. Binnsmead’s auditorium is used at the beginning of the school year for welcoming assemblies, which now will take place in the cafeteria or the gym, Frederick said. Monday’s fire was fought from the sides of the auditorium because firefighters couldn’t determine how much weight the roof could hold, making it difficult to contain the fire. A trench was cut in the middle of the roof, and the fire was controlled at 7:56 p.m. A firefighter cut his hand, but there were no serious injuries. Frederick said that staff and parents were at the scene Monday night to express their support to the school. “This is a close-kni community,” he said, “and this is going to pull the community closer together.”
Fire breaks out at Motera
Express News Service
Ahmedabad, August 11: A fire broke out at the Sardar Patel Gujarat Stadium at Motera on Monday afternoon destroying more than 200 discarded wooden and plastic chairs and other material. Besides, the transformer room of the stadium was partially damaged in the incident. However, nobody was reported injured. According to Ahmedabad Fire Brigade (AFB), the fire was caused when a burning piece of metal fell on the chairs and fibre and plastic sheets near the scoreboard where some electric welding work was in progress. In minutes, all the inflammable material stored near the scoreboard, on the western end of the stadium, caught fire. The fire brigade used three fire tenders, six water tankers and more than fifty to put out the flames in about 45 minutes. According to fire brigade officials, the fire was caused as the workers, engaged in the electric welding work, had not taken care to remove the inflammable materials away from the vicinity of their place of work. A statement released later in the day by President of the Gujarat Cricket Association Narhari Amin said the fire had caused a loss of about Rs 20,000-25,000. However, GSA’s Honorary Secretary Vikram Patel said there was no negligence on part of any staff working at the stadium and it was merely an accident.
Construction Worker Survives 60-Foot Fall From Scaffolding
COCOA, Fla. — Cocoa firefighters claim a construction worker is lucky to be alive after he fell more than 60 feet this morning. Not strange enough? Read more strange news from WFTV.com. He was working on some scaffolding at the Whitley Bay Condominium project in Cocoa. Firefighters were amazed that the man may have only a severely broken leg. Apparently he hit one of the balconies on the way down. That may have broken his fall before he hit the sand. There’s no word on what led to the accident.
Construction worker injured in fall
By OREN DORELL, STAFF WRITER
RALEIGH — The N.C. Department of Labor is investigating a construction worker’s fall early today while working on the Glenwood Avenue bridge over Wade Avenue. Orlando Leon Sattlerwhite, 48, of Warrenton was admitted to WakeMed with a back injury, according to a police report. The incident occurred at about 1:13 a.m. on the 1400 block of Glenwood Avenue. Sattlerwhite was working for C.C. Mangum Contractors LLC of Raleigh, according to the report.
Workers injured in truck accident
By Bill Ruthhart August 12, 2003
Three concrete workers were hospitalized Monday after the truck they were riding in ran off a rural Hamilton County road. Sheriff’s Maj. Mark Bowen said the box truck was southbound on Spring Mill Road just before 7:30 a.m. when it slid off the west side of the road after passing a mo-ped. Bowen said the driver then overcorrected, and the truck crashed into the ditch on the road’s east side. Police said the driver, 37-year-old Vitalino Jimenes-Arenas, was airlifted to Methodist Hospital in Indianapolis. His condition was not available Monday afternoon. The driver’s son, 22-year-old Jose Jimenes-Arenas, and Lorenso Bastanante-Lopez, 35, were taken to Methodist by ambulance. Their conditions also were not available Monday. Bowen said Jose Jimenes-Arenas was complaining of pain all over his body, while Bastanante-Lopez had lower back pain, injuries to his arms and glass in his eye. Both passengers were conscious, and the driver was semiconscious when he was airlifted, police said. The three worked for Custom Concrete and were on their way to a job, Bowen said. Officials from the Westfield company refused to comment on the accident Monday afternoon. Bowen said the three workers had been sitting in the front seat of the truck. Police had no estimate as to how fast the vehicle was moving in the 40 mph speed zone.
Trench accident
WALTHAM — Richard A. Kelly, 22 of Faribault, was injured Monday evening in a drainage trench accident. According to a Mower County Sheriff’s Office report, Kelly was part of a crew working for Hodgman Drainage at the new municipal sanitary sewer project at Waltham. The mishap occurred while the workers were digging a trench near 8 p.m. Monday, according to the report. He was first attended at the scene by a Hayfield Ambulance Service crew and then flown by Mayo One to Saint Mary’s Hospital, Rochester.
Workers Rescued From Collapsed Trench; Two Men Trapped As Trench Walls Cave In
CHICAGO — A trench collapse on the city’s north side Tuesday afternoon trapped two city workers. Emergency workers succeeded in pulling both men from the trench in a methodical rescue effort, according to Tom LaPorte, with the Chicago Water Department. Both rescued workers were taken by ambulance to Illinois Masonic Hospital. Three ambulances were initially called to a construction site near Wilson and Kedzie avenues following the collapse of the walls of the trench in which the men were working. The workers were reportedly buried up to their waists and unable to remove themselves from the trench. Firefighters trained in subterrain rescue have begun working to extract the workers. NBC5 reported that the effort was complicated by the threat of further collapse of the already compromised trench walls.
Bulldozer sinks to bottom of park lake
By: Beth Anderson, Staff Writer August 12, 2003
A bulldozer overshot a ledge on the shore of the southern lake at the former Hallet’s Quarry and landed under 12-feet of water late Monday morning. The driver was not injured. The accident happened in the southeast corner of the southern lake, near U.S. Highway 69, where crews are stabilizing the shore of the lake as part of the creation of Ada Hayden Heritage Park. “As the bulldozer moved out to push a boulder (toward the lake), he got too far out, and the shore gave way,” said Paul Weigand, director of Ames’ public works department. The water level in that area is estimated to be 20 feet deep. The equipment is owned by Peterson Contractors, Inc., or PCI, a Reinbeck construction firm contracted by the City of Ames to build the 437-acre park. PCI is responsible for removing the equipment from the lake and any environmental clean-up, which should be minimal, Weigand said. PCI declined to comment when contacted this morning. Recovery of the bulldozer was expected sometime today. Divers had arrived at the lake by mid-morning. The bulldozer had been involved in the process of installing a pump on the south lake. The pump will be used to lower the lake level so that crews can stabilize the banks. Weigand said he was not too surprised that a bulldozer had gone into the water. “Because of the gravel mining and sand mining (at the old quarry), the banks drop off immediately,” he said. “That’s why we won’t allow swimming in the area.” Ada Hayden will be a passive recreation park, with facilities for boating and fishing. There will be no swimming area and no playground.
Lightning Strikes Worker At Local High School
A bolt of lightning struck DeLand High School on Monday afternoon. A construction worker says he felt a high voltage jolt. The electrician was treated on the scene. He was working on the school’s new auditorium when he felt the shock. The first day of class at DeLand High School always exciting, but never like this. Students may not have seen it, but many of them heard it. It didn’t hit the school, but close enough. It hit an electrical contractor working on the new auditorium nearby. The strange thing is, he was actually inside the building when he was hit. There is a roof on the building, but it’s not finished. It’s made of metal; that’s how it conducted the electricity to his body. The worker said he felt his body tingle. He immediately got off the lift and went for help. We’re told the worker recovered quickly and was back to work about an hour later.