Construction Fall Injuries

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Construction Fall Injuries

Occupational injuries caused by construction falls are a serious concern in New York. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2012 witnessed 22 construction fall accidents in New York – some of which proved fatal. As a construction worker, you take the proper safety measures and obey the rules of your job site, but accidents still occur – often with catastrophic results to you and your family.

Some of the most serious accidents include slips from scaffolds, which claim the lives of construction workers every year. Workers who survive a construction fall accident are often left with grave injuries, life-long disabilities, and staggering medical bills.

The New York personal injury attorneys of Aronova and Associates are committed to defending the rights of all construction workers who have been injured in a construction site fall. We have years of expertise built on trying construction accident lawsuits in New York and obtaining multi-million-dollar settlements and court awards on behalf of our clients.

Have you been injured falling from a ladder, unsafe scaffold or other high location while working at a construction site? If so, you may be eligible for significant compensation. Having the right NY construction accident lawyer on your side can make all the difference regarding the outcome of your case.

Types of Construction Fall Injuries

Unfortunately, many construction workers who fall on a job site do so from hundreds of feet up, often resulting in severe injuries or death. Falling from a high location on a construction can cause many forms of debilitating bodily injury including:

NY construction workers killed in recent falls

A Manhattan office building on West 33rd Street was the site of a gruesome construction fall this past April. The construction worker suffered fatal injuries when he fell ten stories from the roof of the Midtown building. Authorities are still investigating the case to ensure that contractors have complied with all safety regulations. Last November of 2013, another two workers died in construction accident falls – one from an NYU-owned building in Greenwich Village and the other while installing a roof in Pulaski. Twenty-three-year-old Kyle Brown was pronounced dead at the hospital after he plunged a mere 25 feet while working on an F.X. Caprarar building. After investigations, the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration found that Brown’s employer, general construction contractor MTL Design Inc., failed to provide and ensure the use of fall protection safeguards that would have prevented his wrongful death.

OSHA has since cited the Watertown-based contractor for a “willful and serious violation,” forcing the company to pay nearly $90,000 for the worker’s death. According to a regional press release issued by OSHA, the organization found that “while Brown was wearing a fall protection harness, it was useless, as the workers were not provided with a means to connect to an independent anchorage point to stop a fall. The company failed to train employees to recognize fall hazards, ensure adequate anchorage for lifelines, and secure the decking against displacement by the wind.”

Liability in a New York construction accident

Section 240 of New York Labor Law – also referred to as the scaffold law — serves to protect fallen workers in the aftermath of an accident. In many situations, it enables victims to recover damages for their lost income, pain and suffering, and related medical expenses, even if they were partially responsible for their fall. In cases where inadequate training was provided, safety barricades were missing, or other compliance regulations were breached, the construction site owner, as well as the general contractor may be held legally accountable for the worker’s injuries and economic losses.

Attorneys at Aronova and Associates are experts in New York construction law, including the New York Labor Law and OSHA regulations for construction sites, and will ensure that victims are properly compensated for their personal injuries and financial losses. Over the past 46 years, our lawyers have helped countless families in the greater NYC area obtain justice in the wake of a serious or deadly construction site fall.

According to OSHA, construction fall-related hazards frequently include:

When adequate safeguards are not in place, it becomes important to isolate which party is responsible for that failure and hold them liable for any resulting injuries.

Crane Accidents

Aronova and Associates understand the catastrophic trauma associated with crane accidents in the greater metro area. Regardless of whether the accident can be attributed to a defective part, faulty assembling, or a negligent operator, victims must contact a New York personal injury lawyer that they can trust. Our attorneys are available to assist you in the intricate process of filing a lawsuit and will do everything in our power to make sure you receive adequate compensation for injuries that were no fault of your own.

Construction workers who operate cranes, or work alongside crane operators, put themselves at risk every day on the job. Crane accidents may have a long-lasting impact on those involved, as is exemplified by a 2008 crane accident in New York that killed seven people. In 2012, another crane accident on a construction site resulted in one death.

Aronova and Associates is committed to helping construction accident victims by conducting thorough investigations into the circumstances that caused their injuries, to determine if improper maintenance or the negligence of another party were at fault.

Our construction accident attorneys are dedicated to uncovering hazardous work conditions, and we’ll do everything in our power to help you receive the compensation that’s rightfully yours.

If you or a loved one has suffered serious injury or wrongful death following a crane accident, you may be eligible for significant compensation for pain and suffering, lost wages, additional medical benefits, and loss of services for the spouse.

Common causes of crane accidents in New York

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) was established to help ensure safe working conditions for all American employees, including crane operators and construction workers.

According to OSHA, the following are some of the primary causes of crane accidents:

Crane contact with live power lines
Boom collapse
Dropped loads
Falls
Rigging failures
Lifting device failures
Tip overs

Contractors and/or supervisors are charged with ensuring that construction workers and those who operate cranes are properly trained in the use of heavy equipment and that all work adheres to strict safety standards. In addition, routine crane maintenance and proper storage are required. If these duties are in any way neglected and a crane accident results, victims may have a valid claim for damages for their hospital expenses, loss of income, and other losses.

Those who suffer crane accident injuries may be eligible to receive worker’s compensation benefits, but these are rarely enough to fully compensate for the harm sustained. In New York, third parties may be held liable for medical bills, lost wages, lost or diminished earning capacity, pain and suffering, permanent disability, and more.

Liability in a New York crane accident

In New York, individuals are not allowed to sue their direct employers for work-related accidents, and therefore crane accident victims must seek compensation from third-party sources.

Such third parties may include property owners, sub-contractors, architects, general contractors, and equipment manufacturers. To successfully win damages, however, it’s important to have an experienced New York construction accident attorney to represent you.

At Aronova and Associates, our legal team will carefully examine the facts and circumstances surrounding the crane incident to determine liability.

Some of the factors that we consider are:

With over four decades of combined experience handling worker’s compensation claims and seeking relief from a variety of sources for those injured in crane accidents, our attorneys are qualified to assess your case and efficiently determine whether you qualify for additional compensation from third parties.

Our experts have significant experience with New York labor law and OSHA regulations. We work with NY engineers and other industry experts who can determine if your construction accident injuries could have been avoided had reasonable safety been exercised at the work site.

Each year, millions of dollars in settlements and verdicts are awarded to victims of crane accidents and other related construction site injuries. In 2012, construction worker Michael Simermeyer suffered fatal injuries when he was crushed by a huge tractor crane that collapsed on an MTA project. His parents have settled their wrongful death lawsuit for $1 million with the insurance company of Yonkers Contracting.

Have you experienced the
horror of a crane accident?

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