One man was killed and another critically injured in a fall from heights accident in New York City earlier this month. The two men were part of a construction crew working on the Manhattan Bridge, repairing and repainting the surface of the bridge’s underside, when at roughly 1:50 PM on November 17th crews responded to a terrifying 911 call to find two men on the pavement, roughly 100 feet below the platform from which they fell.
When workers are working from a height, they are to be provided with safety equipment. While it appears that both men were wearing fall arrest harnesses, it is unclear whether the equipment they were given was adequate under their circumstances and/or was sufficient given the windy conditions.
The victim who died fell 100 feet and landed on a roadway below. He was killed instantly. The other victim was critically injured and rushed him to a nearby hospital.
The New York Labor Law requires that workers be provided with adequate safety equipment. If a worker is injured in an elevation related accident such as a fall from a height because proper safety equipment was not provided or failed in any way, the New York Labor law holds the property owner and general contractor for the job absolutely responsible for the accident regardless of the actions of the worker. An experienced attorney will invoke the New York Labor Law to hold the property owner and general contractor for the project responsible for the accident because this will go a long way in helping the worker recover compensation for his or her injuries, lost wages from the time of the accident into the distant future and any future medical and rehabilitation expenses.
If you or a loved one has been injured at a job site anywhere in the city in a similar accident, you need an experienced New York City fall from heights accident lawyer working for you. Call the Law Offices of Nussin S. Fogel at 800-734-9338 or 212-385-1122 for your free consultation.