The attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy are following a recent accident that killed a construction worker who was at the Barclays Center in the Fort Green section of Brooklyn.
The accident occurred on Tuesday, February 24 during the afternoon. A 52-year-old ironworker, was working with a construction crew charged with the installing a “green roof” at the arena. The man, an employee of Greenland Forest City Partners, was crushed by a falling beam at the site. He was defenseless and unable to avoid this terrible accident. Emergency personnel rushed to the scene and transported the man to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
Our thoughts and prayers go out to the family and friends of this victim. A fatal accident is always tragic; tragedy is compounded when victims die solely because they showed up to do an honest and hard day’s work. It still happens too often.
An investigation by authorities is already underway. Among other things, investigators will attempt to determine how and why this beam crashed on top of the unsuspecting victim. Most construction sites have specific personnel who are required to identify and address possible dangers at a work site. Safely securing a steel beam is not an option; it is imperative.
If this beam fell because it was not properly secured, someone will be taken to task for this. It will likely be cited as a cause of this deadly accident. If the hoist or the method by which this beam was hoisted was not safe, the investigation should reveal that.
Construction is a dangerous vocation. There are very few jobs in the world where a normal day can end with a hard-working person being killed by falling steel beam. In New York, construction workers represent the greatest percentage of worker fatalities.
The laws in New York recognize the dangers that construction workers confront every day and seek to protect workers by holding property owners, developers and general contractors responsible. The law makes them liable if someone is injured or killed because they failed to provide a safe work environment. Worker safety laws must remain strong to reduce the number of construction worker injuries and deaths.
As the investigation unfolds we will bring you the details of how and why this happened. Block O’Toole & Murphy is a law firm committed to fighting on behalf of injured workers. The firm has recovered more than $850 million in verdicts and settlements for their clients and is recognized as one of the leading firms in the country when it comes to helping construction workers and their families inside and outside of the courtroom. You can learn more about this team of committed lawyers by reviewing their firm website at www.blockotoole.com. For a free consultation you may contact them at 212-736-5300.
Source: http://nypost.com/2015/02/24/construction-worker-dies-at-barclays-center/