Workplace Injuries

• Fatal bridge construction accident

  Barry Doyle | March 29, 2007 7:38 AM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  One bridge worker was killed and another injured when the crewboat they were in was struck by a barge being pushed by a tugboat. Authortities were investigating whether the tug boat lights were operating properly.The worker who was killed suffered massive abdominal, chest, and head injuries. The injured worker suffered internal injuries and weas hospitalized.Because this accident occurred on...

• Decatur accident fatal for insulator

  Barry Doyle | March 28, 2007 10:49 PM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  A contractor was killed at an Archer Daniels MIdland facility in Dectaur. The employee and his crew were working on isulation at the facility.In the accident, the worker was exposed to hot steam which resulted in burns to 87 percent of his body, which resulted his death.When contractors are working in facilties that have active systems, special care has to be made sure that the system is placed...

• Worker killed in fall down open air shaft

  Barry Doyle | March 28, 2007 9:28 AM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  In Buffalo, a construction worker fell 30 feet down an open air shaft. Guard rails had been put in place at the entry to the air shaft but were missing at the time of the fall.The worker sustained fatal injuries as a result of the fall.Floor openings such as the open air shaft pose a serious risk to workers on a construction site. Becxause of this, OSHA regulations require that openings such...

• Knowledge of hazards key to trench collapse prevention

  Barry Doyle | March 23, 2007 7:01 AM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  The foreman of a Texas plumbing crew admitted that he was not familiar with the federal regulations which are intended to protect workers against the hazards of a trench collapse. As a result, he sent his crew into a trench that had been dug three weeks earlier. Intervening rainstorms had weakened the walls of the trench, leading to a collapse which trapped one of his co-workers.The trapped...

• Wisconsin man killed in fall at construction site

  Barry Doyle | March 16, 2007 8:00 PM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  A Wisconsin man was killed at a construction site when he fell through an open floor hole at a building that was under construction. The height of the fall was three stories. OSHA investigated the accident and fined the company for nuerous safety violations.As a result of the fall, the man suffered fatal head injuries.OSHA regulations require that when there is a floor opening, it is either...

• OSHA fines Texas demolition contractor $135,000

  Barry Doyle | March 14, 2007 11:11 PM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  A Texas demolition contractor has been fined $135,900 by OSHA after materials fell from the 19th floor of a building being demolished and struck two of the company's employees. The general contractor on the job site was also fined.The falling materials resulted in two workers suffering fatal injuries.The fines were issued for safety violations including failing to use an enclosed chute to drop...

• Worker injured in fall through floor hole

  Barry Doyle | March 13, 2007 8:00 AM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  A Massachusetts man was injured while working on the roof of an apartment. He fell through on open hole on the roof where he was working. When the building is completed duct work will pass through the hole.The man was airlifted from the scene suffering from traumatic cardiac arrest.Floor openings such as this pose a real hazard to construction workers who must work around them. People are...

• Construction worker killed by falling scaffolding

  Barry Doyle | March 10, 2007 9:00 AM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  A construction worker was killed when he was struck by falling scaffolding which was being assembled by co-workers. As the co-workers were moving scaffolding components places, portions of the scaffolding fell and struck him.The worker suffered head injuries which proved fatal.One of the basic safety concepts in construction is to stay clear of work being performed overhead due to the dangers...

• Belleville road construction accident injures several

  Barry Doyle | March 05, 2007 5:30 AM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  Several workers on a road construction project on Route 161 in Belleville were injured when a pick up truck left the roadway and hit an embankment where work was ongoing.At least three workers on the project were injured, one of whom suffered head injuries.On any road construction project, the general contractor has an obligation to ensure that the traffic flows are properly redirected from the...

• Worker killed in trench collapse

  Barry Doyle | February 27, 2007 12:30 PM | 0 CommentsCook County, IL

  Missouri man was killed when a 12-foot deep trench he was working in as part of a sewer project collapsed, burying him in earth past his legs. OSHA is investigating the accident.Once the victim is buried past his legs, the chances of death increase greatly because the pressure from the earth puts pressure on the diaphragm, resulting in suffocation.The article that was the basis of this story...