Construction Deaths and Injuries Continue to Plague New York

If you have a loved one who works in the New York construction industry, there’s no sugarcoating the truth: Construction workers are in a hazardous and risk prone profession.

According to New York City data, work site deaths have risen 33-percent over the last five years and workplace injuries are up a shocking 221-percent on construction sites.

Observers have attributed these numbers to the recent construction boom New York City has experienced. As the need for new buildings and repairs to older buildings intensifies, builders are sometimes hiring contractors who are inexperienced or who cut safety corners in an effort to increase their profits. This has helped create the conditions for a rising number of deaths and injuries within the industry.

Let’s take a look at some of the more recent construction incidents in New York City.

Recent NYC Constructions Deaths and Injuries

• Falling glass from a Manhattan hi-rise crashed onto the street below, causing significant property damage.
• A Long Island teenager and another worker were killed in July after falling from a makeshift scaffold. The scaffold’s use was not permitted and the company has been fined.
• A worker was trapped in a trench for hours and had to be rescued by first responders after a construction site retaining wall gave away. The victim was airlifted to a hospital.
• A construction worker was killed after falling 30 feet near Grand Central Terminal.
• A Brooklyn hot dog vendor was seriously injured after a construction site wall collapsed and tumbled onto his food cart.
• A Manhattan construction worker was crushed when a crane fell on him near the Holland Tunnel. His death was one of three construction fatalities recorded in NYC in a single week.

A Delay in Passing New Safety Laws

While 2019 has been a year beset with many accidents involving construction workers, efforts to improve worksite safety have not moved with greater speed.

Local Law 196, a construction training and safety law passed by NYC officials in 2017, has yet to be fully implemented. The law requires workers to be given at least 40 hours of safety training, and for supervisors to be given at least 62 hours of safety training.

However, city officials have pushed back the deadline for implementation several times after hearing criticism that the new law could reduce job opportunities for workers who don’t have access to the required training. Currently, the deadline for compliance with the law is September, 2020.

In a city that has been averaging more than 20 construction site deaths and thousands of injuries each year, observers have been urging accelerated action, and new efforts to protect local workers.

Finding the Right Construction Accident Attorney

If you have been injured in a construction accident, it is important to find a knowledgeable, dedicated and experienced team of attorney’s ready to fight for your rights. Personal injury cases can be quite complex.

It’s critical to find a law firm that will focus their time and resources on your case. Timely and thorough investigation and knowledgeable and aggressive action on your behalf is likely to be very important in order to properly vindicate your rights under the law.

Call the Frankel Law Firm for a free consultation. All construction accident cases are accepted on a contingency fee basis which means that you will not pay any attorneys fee unless there is a recovery. Call us at (212) 888-5100 or contact us on our website – www.frankellawfirm.com.

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