Relatives grieve death of security guard killed in NYC building fall
On September 18, 2020 afternoon a 55-year-old security guard suffered a tragic wrongful death inside the partially constructed building in Manhattan. The security gaurd tumbled six stories down a ventilation shaft into the sub-basement. First responders pulled out the Queens man and rushed him to New York-Presbyterian Lower Manhattan Hospital, but he could not be saved.
The New York City Department of Buildings ordered all work at the site to be halted as they launch an investigation next day. For several years, construction crews have been overhauling the 88-year-old Art Deco Manhattan tower into multi-million-dollar condos. Developers also plan to build a 50th floor penthouse with an asking price of $38 million. Our NYC wrongful death attorneys who represent families of people who have suffered fatalities on construction sites, know that New York's labor laws provide strong remedies for the families of people who are tragically killed on construction site because of unsafe site conditions. New York's Labor Laws require that the landowners and general contractors comply with specifications to provide a safe worksite for all people employed on the work site including security gaurds and repairmen. When these regulations are violated and a worker dies as a result, the site owner and general contractor can be sued under New York's Labor Law. New York's Labor Law 240, which is often known as the scaffold law or the ladder law, also applies to deaths from falling, because it requires the contractors to provide fall protection when a worker has to perform their duties at or above an unprotected height such as an elevator shaft. New York Labor Law 240, also known as the Scaffold Law, is a pillar of workplace safety in the state of New York and covers workers who work at dangerous heights or at risk of injury from falling objects. The Scaffold Law requires parties with the resources and knowledge of safety to provide proper ladders, scaffolds, harnesses and other equipment. Labor Law 240 applies to property owners, contractors, and employers, holding them liable for injuries which result from improper or malfunctioning equipment.Another one of these laws is New York Labor Law 200, which requires property owners and contractors to remedy hazardous conditions and ensure safe work practices. This includes maintaining and storing all equipment to provide adequate protection for workers. Labor Law 241, also requires contractors and site owners to comply with the regulations of New York's Industrial Code. The law sets safety regulations for many hazards faced by construction, demolition, and excavation workers. These include slipping and tripping hazards, injury from falling objects or hazardous openings, material storage and handling, demolition and disposal of debris, and more. New York's Labor Law 241 has specific regulations which require that railings be provided and that unsafe holes and openings be gaurded. These laws protects both employees and people who frequently visit the job sites. This Queens security gaurd is the latest victim of a tragic construction accident in Manhattan, which is unfortunately not an isolated incident. According to the New York City Building Department, at least 22 people were killed in elevator shafts in New York City since 2010 and there were about 500 incidents ith 48 serious injuries. Almost a year ago another construction worker tragically died after falling down an elevator shaft, at building in Manhattan at 30th Street and Broadway. According to the Occupational Safety and Health Adminstration (OSHA), approximately 80 percent of all elevator related deaths are suffered by elevator contractors including construction workers. Our New York construction wrongful death attorneys know that the sad reality, is that if the Labor Laws were followed, these workers would still be alive today.
If you have any injury on a construction site, it is important you talk to experts like us to determine whether you were denied a safe work site. Property owners and contractors are responsible for any violation, whether committed by their employees, a sub-contractor’s employees, or any other contractor.
If you or someone you love was injured or killed while working on a construction project of any kind, let us help you. If an employer, owner, or contractor violated one of these Safe Place to Work laws, our New York construction fatality lawyers will help hold them responsible.
