New York Construction Accident Law Blog

Bronx Construction Worker Accident at Freedom Tower Causes "Turf War"

Troy Rosasco — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 19:58:55 -0500

As reported in today's New York Daily News, Bronx construction worker Jose Jerez was seriously injured yesterday when he fell 14 feet onto a piece of plywood floor while working at the Freedom Tower. The 28 year old Jerez was working on a doorway 100 feet above ground level at Ground Zero. The article did not describe the cause of the worker's plunge and what, if any, safety equipment was provided to him to prevent the fall (perhaps a harness?).

Unfortunately, the story dealt more with the "turf war" between the Port Authority and the FDNY over which agency should respond to such emergencies. Apparently, the Port Authority has sole jurisdiction over the former World Trade Center site, and actually prevented Fire Department medical responders from entering the site to help Mr. Jerez..

This is typical of New York City bureaucracy BS! If the New York City Fire Department medical team responded first, were they supposed to just wait outside the fence to the Freedom Tower while the construction worker screamed in pain?! Thankfully, I have a feeling that New York's Bravest" wouldn't stand for such silliness and would always do whatever was necessary to aid an injured worker.

This is not the first construction accident fall at the Freedom Tower, and it certainly won't be the last. Click here to follow the ongoing progress of the re-building of Ground Zero in pictures (they have now placed the structural steel up to 20 floors). Let's hope the Port Authority responds more professionally in the future.

New York's Long Cold Winter Leads to Increased Construction Site Accidents

Troy Rosasco — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 19:11:34 -0500

The winter of 2010 is turning out to be particularly hazardous to New York City construction workers who regularly work outside or in unheated enclosures. This year's unusually low temperatures, when combined with large snow falls, lingering ice, and frequent downpours of rain, have created a "perfect storm" causing untold numbers of carpenters, iron workers etc. to have accidents on construction sites that would not normally have occurred during a milder winter.

Just yesterday, Turley , Redmond, Rosasco & Rosasco was retained by a worker who stepped off a hi-lo onto ice that should have been cleared, sanded, or salted by the owner of the property where he was working. Our client fell directly on his rear end and suffered a severely fractured coccyx bone (more commonly known as the tail bone and almost impossible to repair surgically). His orthopedic doctor at a university hospital said he had only seen such a severe break of the coccyx bone in professional athletes. He was told he would be out of work for at least six months to see if it will heal on it's own. Otherwise, he will have to consider surgery and Social Security Disability.

The sad part of this story is that this injury was entirely preventable. Our client, along with numerous other employees, had complained to the property owner about the dangerous ice conditions for weeks after the large snow storm earlier this winter. The property owner had piles of salt and sand stacked on the work site, but failed to use it. It was as if the sand and salt were there just for show!

For his immediate money and medical needs, the worker will have to live on New York workers' comp benefits for the foreseeable future. Luckily, since the property owner was not his employer, we will be able to sue for additional economic damages and pain and suffering. However, in order to get the client the maximum potential recovery at trial, it is likely that the client will be waiting for at least a few years. All of this could have been prevented had the property owner simply spread a little sand and salt on the ground! Silly!

In this frigid weather, according to OSHA, there are many things construction workers can do to protect themselves in cold weather. Please remember to dress properly (layers, hats, gloves, Vaseline on your toes before putting on socks), take frequent breaks, and avoid drinks with caffeine or alcohol. Despite what others might say, a warm cup of "Joe" or a small nip of brandy will only make you colder. Better to drink a warm sports-type drink.

Finally, there is no better protection than being alert at all times on a construction site. This means getting a good night's rest before working outside the next day in the cold. Experienced New York construction accident lawyers know that extremely cold weather and outside work is often times a recipe for unfortunate accidents. Be careful out there!

$900,000 Settlement in Suffolk for Ankle Fracture Due to Construction Site Ladder Accident

Troy Rosasco — Sun, 06 Dec 2009 12:33:02 -0500

As winter approaches with ice and freezing rain, I am sure that that more carpenters and other workers on construction sites will be calling our offices with ladder accidents. Unfortunately, for those construction workers who have work during the winter, their jobs become doubly dangerous.

Last Friday in Suffolk County Supreme Court in Riverhead, our trial attorneys settled a case involving a construction worker who slipped off a ladder and broke his ankle for $900,000. Our client was working on new construction at a local school district at the time of the accident. We had already wrapped up the workers' compenstation portion of his claim and taken care of all his past medical care.

Of course, this was not the "run of the mill" ankle fracture. It was the far more serious trimalleolar fracture involving all three bones of the ankle, the tibia, fibula and talus (see diagram above). This is a very unstable fracture and requires surgery involving the placement of multiple surgical screws in the ankle joint, as it did in this case (see x-ray below of trimalleolar fracture with screws). Unfortunately, due to this injury our client was never able to return to his career as a union carpenter.

The thing that makes this case even more significant was that such a high settlement amount was negotiated in the normally very conservative Suffolk County, New York. Suffolk County is still New York State's largest agricultural county, and juries tend to be more conservative than those we see in the Bronx or other NYC boroughs.

The case was settled during jury selection and like any good poker player, our trial attorney held on to his cards until he got the client the number he wanted. Our client never expected such a large recovery from his lawsuit, and he and his wife were quite pleased to say the least.

As winter approaches, all workers on construction sites should be extra careful when climbing and descending ladders. One wrong step could end your career in construction.

NYC Buildings Ready to Collapse Require Emergency Construction Scaffolding

Troy Rosasco — Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:16:57 -0500

Scary story by Reuven Blau in yesterday's New York Post about stalled construction projects throughout NYC causing debris to rain down on innocent pedestrians. So far this year, at least 15 pedestrians have been hurt by falling construction debris.

Apparently, due to the economic slump, many mothballed construction sites are now either being demolished or shored up with emergency scaffolding sheds at triple the rate of 2007 to prevent accidents. The city has created a special five person inspection team to investigate the growing problem. Such dangerous conditions could lead to injured workers or pedestrians to file a lawsuit under Labor Law 241(6).

Like many of you, I frequently walk through the constant maze of ongoing hi-rise construction jobs in Manhattan. Until everything is shored up properly, maybe we should all be walking on the other side of the street if possible. Be careful out there!

Unsafe Concrete Could Lead to NYC Freedom Tower Construction Accidents

Troy Rosasco — Thu, 19 Nov 2009 13:23:46 -0500

The criminal "racketeering" type charges against a major New York concrete company "shook the foundation of the city's construction industry".

According to an AP News story yesterday, Testwell Laboratories, Inc. and three of it's executives go on trial today for "enterprise corruption" for allegedly faking concrete strength tests at Ground Zero, the new Yankee Stadium, the Jet Blue Terminal at Kennedy Airport, the Second Avenue Subway and almost 100 major construction projects throughout NYC.

"The charges of faking test results cast doubt on a technical but important part of building in a city of subways and skyscrapers. Despite its bland look, concrete is carefully tailored for different uses and sensitive to variations in ingredients, storage and other factors, making testing a necessity, said Christian Meyer, a Columbia University civil engineering professor who specializes in concrete technology."

Every day New York City construction workers are hurt due to defects in concrete on the work-site. Let's hope that the failure of Testwell to do the right thing does not result in future injuries or death on some of New York's' biggest construction projects, including the current building of the Freedom Tower on the World Trade Center site.

Be careful out there!

Rosasco to Lecture to Trial Lawyers on "Tough Issues" in Construction Accident Cases

Troy Rosasco — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:38:16 -0500

I will be lecturing to other trial lawyers next Friday, November 20, 2009, at a full day seminar sponsored by the New York State Bar Association entitled "Handling Tough Issues in a Plaintiff's Personal Injury Case ".

I was asked by my good friend and colleague Russell Corker to specifically discuss new case law that may help construction accident lawyers to significantly reduce workers' compensation liens which need to be paid back at the end of a construction accident case.

Often times, injured workers are not told upfront by their construction accident attorney that any money they receive and the cost of medical care from workers' compensation will have to be paid back to the workers' compensation carrier at the end of any civil lawsuit arising out of the same accident. Luckily, for those who know the recent changes in the law as a result of the Court of Appeals decision in Burns v. Varialle, such "liens" can often be substantially reduced, if not eliminated, by having the workers' compensation insurance carrier pay a portion of the worker's legal fees.

If you are an injured construction worker, wouldn't you like to effectively pay less than the standard 1/3 legal fee? It can be done if handled correctly. This seminar will teach other lawyers how to protect their clients rights in negotiating a reduction of the lien and preserving their client's right to future workers' compensation benefits.

Construction Accident Lawyer Prevails in Fatal Manhattan Crane Collapse

Troy Rosasco — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 11:02:01 -0500

It was on of the worst construction site accidents in New York City in recent memory. On March 16th of last year, a high rise crane towering over an upper East Side construction project collapsed raining steel and concrete on the workers below. Five construction workers died, and many more were seriously injured.

Turley, Redmond, Rosasco & Rosasco, LLP represents one of the more seriously injured construction workers. When insurance companies are faced with huge financial exposure after such accidents, they bring out their "big gun" lawyers to defend the sometimes catastrophic injury claims. Because seriously injured workers often require medical care and have pain and suffering for life, it is a strange and unfortunate legal reality that these claims are often worth more than the claims brought by the families of those who died.

In a bruising battle with the insurance company handled by one of our best trial partners, which included pre-trial motions, depositions, extensive witness preparation and an eventual multi-day trial, we were able to convince a trial judge that our client was entitled to a substantial monetary award and ongoing medical benefits for life. Although our client will never work again in his profession and will have to live with his ongoing pain, he and his family are now protected from financial ruin.

Welcome to the New York Construction Accident Law Blog

Troy Rosasco — Thu, 12 Nov 2009 09:36:42 -0500

Turley, Redmond, Rosasco & Rosasco, LLP is pleased to announce the launch of our new New York Construction Accident Law Blog. As our banner above indicates, we will provide valuable information, insights and support for injured construction workers throughout New York State. As part of this public service, we will be providing you with updates on New York's special laws which protect construction workers, namely New York State Labor Law 200, Labor Law 240 (The Scaffold Law) and Labor Law 241(6) .

Every day workers are seriously injured on construction sites due to Owners, Employers and General Contractors failing to provide adequate safety equipment and protections to their employees. We will be updating this blog weekly with helpful information for injured construction workers. You can subscribe easily by either email notification or RSS feed located on the left side column of this blog. This way you will be automatically notified of new and breaking information that may be useful to you. We will also be providing on the left side a number of useful and 'must read" links to informational resources for injured construction workers. We are still buliding additional information for the blog, so check back frequently for new features.

The lack of adequate safety on construction sites is an ongoing problem as builders cut corners to save money. We offer this site as a public service to educate and give support to workers injured on construction sites. As part of this educational process, we welcome you to post general "comments" or "questions at the end of any of our blog posts. If you prefer to ask specific questions about a specific case in a confidential manner, we strongly suggest that you contact us Toll Free at 1-888-9HURTWORKER (1-888-948-7896). Ask to speak to Troy Rosasco, Senior Partner, at extension 123.

Thankfully, New York State law provides special legal rights, beyond workers' compensation, to many construction workers depending upon how they were injured. The attorneys at Turley, Redmond, Rosasco & Rosasco know these special laws and the fact patterns to which they apply. Many other personal injury lawyers, who may also be handling automobile accidents, medical malpractice, class action or trip & fall cases, can honestly miss potential claims you may have causing you to lose significant money damages for you pain and suffering. Because we have been handling construction site accident cases every day for over 20 years, we will not miss any potential lawsuit you may have and we will advise you of your rights.

Thank you for visiting our new blog and we look forward to serving you, the injured construction worker, in the future.