Another construction accident leads to fatality

We have recently discussed the dangers that construction workers in North Carolina and elsewhere face while on-the-job. Understandably, any fatality in the workplace raises concerns, and typically results in an investigation by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This is the case in a construction accident in which a worker recently fell to his death.

The $450 million renovation project underway at a major southern university employed many construction workers, one of them the 25-year-old man who recently lost his life. The worker was apparently doing construction work on the fourth level of a spiral pedestrian ramp when he fell. He was rushed to a local hospital, but he died not long after his arrival.

Local police in College Station, Texas and OSHA are in the midst of investigations surrounding the fatal accident. This is not the first investigation that OSHA has conducted regarding the construction company involved. In July 2013, the same construction company reached a settlement with OSHA regarding safety issues at a demolition project in Wichita Falls. It paid a $2,000 fine in that matter.

Another construction company involved in the project was also previously cited for not providing proper fall-protection, as per OSHA’s regulations, on a different project. As part of a settlement agreement, that company paid $4,000 out of the $8,000 they were fined. The family of the young man killed while working on this project may feel as if the construction company didn’t do enough to prevent the fatal construction accident. In any event, they are likely entitled to workers’ compensation death benefits as a result of the tragedy. North Carolina workers face similar dangers while working on construction projects, but they and their families also share the same right to a Charlotte workers compensation attorney to secure these important, state-regulated insurance benefits payable when workers are injured or killed on-the-job.

Source: Culture Map Houston, Mystery builds around falling death at Texas A&M University stadium, Tyler Rudik, Dec. 6, 2013