In the latest construction fatality in New York City, a worker fell 30 feet to his death last week after a platform in an elevator shaft collapsed.
New sources report that the accident occurred at a 28-story building under construction in midtown Manhattan. City building officials immediately issued a full work stop ordered and issued safety violations to BRF Construction, the company that had obtained the permit for construction.
The company was issued a fall protection-related violation in March – with a penalty of $12,000 – after a worker who was not wearing a harness was exposed to a 15’ to 20’ foot fall.
A report issued in May by the New York Committee for Occupational Safety & Health slammed the city’s construction industry for its high accident and fatality rates, noting that although the construction industry accounts for less than four percent of the jobs in New York City, it represents 20 percent of the on-the-job deaths.
The average OSHA-levied penalty for fatal height-related construction accidents in 2012 was only $7,620.