South Florida Injury Attorney Blog

A construction worker died hours after a crane collapsed at a seawall project in Lighthouse Point, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported June 17. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the accident that killed Albert “Tiger” Phillips, a 43-year-old father of three. A representative from OSHA’s Fort Lauderdale office declined to comment on the matter, but told the Sun-Sentinel that this is the third workplace death of 2009 for Broward County.

Phillips was helping to build a seawall on the North Grand Canal June 16 when a crane collapsed onto his legs, pinning him to the ground. Co-workers pulled the crane off, and Phillips flashed them a thumbs-up sign as he left in an ambulance, suggesting he was okay. But a few hours later, the Sun-Sentinel reported, he was dead of unspecified injuries. Work was cancelled at the site June 17 in his honor.

As a Pompano Beach construction accident lawyer, I know that construction sites, with their heavy machinery and equipment, are some of the most dangerous civilian workplaces in America. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, 13 out of 100,000 construction workers died on the job in 2006; the most common accidents were falls or being struck by or against objects. Federal and state laws are supposed to help prevent accidents by setting safety standards for construction sites -- but due to carelessness or cost-cutting, those standards are too often ignored. The result can be death or permanent disability for workers who happened to be standing in the wrong place.

Victims of construction accidents, and their loved ones, still have rights. People who have suffered serious injuries or lost a loved one in a construction accident may hold the responsible parties legally liable for their actions with a Fort Lauderdale construction accident lawsuit. A lawsuit can help victims who are facing huge medical bills and other accident-related costs, right at a time when they are unable to work or have lost an income. It can also compensate victims for their non-financial but very real injuries, including a physical injury, pain, emotional trauma, and any permanent disability or wrongful death that results.

Continue reading "Broward County Construction Accident Claims Life of Coconut Creek Man" »

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A 67-year-old construction worker was killed instantly in an accident involving a concrete pump, Miami’s CBS 4 reported April 27. The unnamed man was apparently working on the ground early on Monday on a new mixed-use development in Kendall, across from the Dadeland Mall. The telescoping arm attached to a concrete pump truck somehow detached from the truck and fell on him. He was killed instantly, according to the article. A supervisor at the concrete company, C&C Concrete, said he was not sure what went wrong, but Miami-Dade police and the Occupational Safety and Health Administration will both investigate.

I’m sad to say that this is the second South Florida construction accident I have read about in a week. The week before, a Broward County worker died when a dump truck driver backed over him as he removed cones from the highway where he was working. As I wrote then, construction work has one of the highest injury and fatality rates of any occupational category, according to the federal Department of Labor Statistics. And despite the many safety rules construction sites must follow, being struck by a heavy object is the second most common fatal construction accident, after falls from a height. Other major killers at construction sites include electrocution and accidents with heavy equipment.

Under federal law and many state laws, construction companies must follow basic workplace safety rules to prevent these serious accidents. But some companies and workers choose not to follow these laws, simply because not doing so is cheaper. In making that choice, these companies are consciously and explicitly putting their profits ahead of worker safety. If this failure to follow the rules later results in a serious accident, the hurt workers or their loved ones have the right to hold that company legally and financially responsible for the results of its choice. A Pembroke Pines construction accident lawsuit can help them recover compensation for their injuries or the loss of a loved one, as well as for pain, suffering and the costs of medical care and lost wages caused by the accident.

If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury in a Florida construction accident, you should speak to our firm, Cohn, Smith & Cohn, as soon as possible. Our Weston construction accident attorneys have more than 25 years of experience representing victims of very serious injuries at construction sites and due to work-related car and truck accidents. Even if you are collecting workers’ compensation, we may be able to help. To learn more at a free, confidential consultation, please contact our firm online or call us today at (954) 431-8100.

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A construction worker was in critical condition after he was pinned under the wheels of a dump truck for nearly an hour, the South Florida Sun-Sentinel reported April 21. The accident happened late on the night of April 20, when the victim, Airsteed Bell, was moving cones in South Federal Highway to allow trucks into a formerly blocked-off lane. Dump truck driver Alexis Martin backed up the truck, running over Bell and pinning him under the wheels of the truck until rescue workers could free him. He said he could not see Bell. Both the police and inspectors from the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration are investigating.

As a South Florida construction accident attorney, I took special notice of this story because OSHA got involved so quickly. The story doesn’t give enough details for us to say for sure, but the interest of these federal regulators suggests that they think good safety practices may not have been in use at the site. If any workplace fails to meet its basic safety requirements under federal or state safety regulations, victims of serious workplace accidents may sue that employer for the cost of their injuries, the wages they lost and compensation for their injuries, pain and suffering.

Many workplaces in the United States are subject to OSHA’s occupational safety laws, but construction sites come under special scrutiny because they have one of the highest accident rates of any industry. According to the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics, 13 out of every 10,000 construction workers were killed on the job in 2006. Because of the nature of construction work, workers were most commonly hurt or killed by falls; being struck by or against a heavy object; and contact with machinery. But over all industries, transportation accidents are by far the most common killer of workers. According to 2007 numbers from the Bureau, transportation incidents accounted for 42% of worker deaths that year, and another 25% were highway incidents.

If you or a loved one has suffered a serious injury or death on the job, you should speak to Cohn, Smith & Cohn as soon as possible. Our Fort Lauderdale construction accident lawyers help clients throughout South Florida who have lost a loved one or been seriously injured because someone else chose not to follow required safety rules at work. We can help people who need help getting or keeping fair workers’ compensation payments, as well as those who would like to file a Hialeah construction accident lawsuit in addition to or instead of claiming workers’ comp. And we offer free consultations, so you risk nothing by speaking to us about your situation.

To set up a free, confidential consultation with Cohn, Smith & Cohn, please contact us online today or call our main Hollywood office at (954) 431-8100.

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A teenager helping his father work at a construction site was killed Jan. 11 when a trench unexpectedly collapsed around him, the Sarasota Herald-Tribune reported. Danilo Riccardi Sr. was part of a construction crew installing concrete culverts at a church, where he brought his three sons, ages 12 to 14, to help out. When he needed water to mix cement, he sent the eldest, Danilo Riccardi Jr., to get some water. But when the younger Riccardi went to the eight-to-ten-foot trench to scoop up some standing water (there was no running water at the site), the walls of the trench collapsed and buried him in a quicksand-like mud. A large rescue crew dug the teenager out but was unable to revive him.

As a spokesman for the Charlotte County sheriff's office said in the article, this situation is a tragedy. My heart goes out to the Riccardi family. But as a South Florida construction accident attorney, I wonder what the Occupational Safety and Health Administration investigation will conclude about the accident. OSHA rules do not apply to non-employees, but construction companies still must take reasonable care not to harm non-employees that visit construction sites. That includes employees of other contractors, passers-by and visitors like the three teenagers. Of course, everyone is still responsible for taking reasonable care around dangerous situations.

Falls are the most common fatal accident at construction sites nationwide, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Labor. (And construction work is consistently one of the deadliest job categories in the United States.) For that reason, OSHA safety rules require that employers provide fall protection (such as a guardrail or a net) in any situation with a potential fall of six feet or greater, as well as a fall of any height into dangerous equipment. There are many similar safety regulations addressing other hazards, and employers may also be required to train employees on good safety practices.

When employers fail to meet these basic legal duties, workers and others can be killed in a Florida construction accident. And when that happens, victims' families have the right to sue the construction companies responsible, unless workers' compensation payments are available. In a Florida wrongful death lawsuit, families can recover medical costs, funeral bills, lost income and other costs related to the accident, as well as compensation for the sudden and irrevocable loss of the loved one's care, companionship and love. If you have lost someone to carelessness and you are considering pursuing a claim, Cohn, Smith & Cohn can help. To set up a free consultation with our attorneys, please contact us today.

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Posted In: construction accidents , injuries to minors , wrongful death

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