Personal Injury Lawyer in Long Island for Construction Accident Cases
A construction worker fatality occurred in New York at the Barclays Center in a report by CBS New York dated February 24, 2015. The construction worker was part of the team installing the environment-friendly roof of the Barclays Center. He was hit by one or more steel joists that rolled off from the truck. The worker’s identity has not been released yet. Greenland Forest City Partners, the Barclay Center development venture, stated that the accident was undergoing investigation.
The Fatal Four
Being a construction worker is one of the most dangerous jobs with records showing that for every 100 construction workers, six will experience accident at work. Moreover, for every five fatalities in the workplace, one was a construction worker.
Dubbed as the “fatal four”, the top four causes of construction fatalities are falls, being hit by an object, electrocutions, and being caught-in/between. The regulatory bodies for construction work, primarily the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), are continuously refining standards for construction sites to become safer for its workers. While the “fatal four” are the primary basis for the development of regulations and standards, authorities also cover all kinds of accidents that occur in construction sites.
Serious Injury and What You Can Do
Even if the accident does not lead to death, the alternative is usually incapacitating injury. Some even lead to permanent disability. In more than a few cases, the accident was because of neglect in safety standards on the part of the employer. According to OSHA, the most-violated of their standards is fall protection, which probably explains why the top cause of death is falls. In this case, the person who suffered from a construction site accident may be entitled to compensation.
Filing a claim is the easy part. Winning, on the other hand, is another story. The defendants are often prepared to face such cases, but that should not discourage anyone who has a legitimate claim. A knowledgeable personal injury lawyer in Long Island can guide a claimant through the process and represent him in hearings, which would be a big help in winning the case.
Many established firms in New York, like The Law Offices of Joseph Lichtenstein, have lawyers experienced in this kind of cases. Consulting a personal injury attorney in Long Island will be beneficial to the claimant. The details of the case can be better organized and the claimant would clearly know how much compensation he deserves.
(Source: Construction Worker At Barclays Center Hit, Killed By Steel Joist, CBS New York, Feb. 24, 2015)