A construction worker fell 13 stories to his death last week at a building site at 424 West 33rd Street between Ninth and Tenth Avenues in Manhattan. The New York City Department of Buildings has found more than 40 open violations at the site.
The 34-year-old man, Lukasz Stolarski, was not wearing a harness when he fell. He was standing on a ledge between the penthouse and the roof level. The construction company was working on facade restoration. The Department of Buildings issued a stop work order pending investigation. This means that the construction company cannot work at the site until the order is lifted.
The open violations include failure to safeguard persons or property, failure to report an accident, and failure to keep records of daily inspection of suspended scaffold. Additionally, the construction company has been cited for work that did not conform to approved plans, failure to provide approved plans upon request, failure to provide guardrails, and failure to provide protection to workers at the site. Other violations include failing to post re4q3uireed signs and permits.
This is the second fatal construction accident in recent weeks in New York. On April 2, a worker fell eight stories to his death from a scaffold at the site of the Dream Hotel at 210 West 55th Street. There apparently was a plank missing from the scaffolding, according to police. The NYC Department of Buildings issued a stop work order at the site.
Source: ABC, “Violations at Midtown site where worker fell to his death,” Apr. 16, 2014.