On April 24th, the New York Daily News reported that a crane had collapsed at 11:44 am. A worker had been attempting to fix a part of the crane’s hydraulic system when a hose burst, which ultimately caused the crane to collapse. The accident occurred on the construction site for the posh Even hotel. There have been complaints about safety on site, and the city had issued two partial stays of the construction. Those, however, were dropped by the New York Department of Buildings.
Yet Another Crane Accident
In 2008, New York City had two major headline crane accidents, one of which set the record for the most deaths from a construction accident in New York City history at six lives. Both sites had been written up for safety complaints and were subject to partial stop work orders. Compared to the collapses in 2008, today’s accident was a miracle that only one person lost their life.
Concerns Remain Ignored
In addition to today’s crane accident, this spring alone we have seen at least four other construction site injuries, as covered in our blog earlier this month. With the increasing frequency of these accidents, residents and commuters are more concerned than ever with their safety in New York. A persistent pattern has emerged of where work crews and those simply near the construction sites are needlessly endangered. Records indicate that each accident this spring was prefaced by the same series of complaints and partial stop work orders as in the catastrophic 2008 crane accidents. With land developers and city officials either ignoring or powerless to change these conditions, the only meaningful voice residents can have is once they’ve become a victim.
If the unthinkable has happened, let us be your voice. We will fight as hard for you as we would our own family. For the victim of a construction accident; or a family member has suffered a wrongful death, we understand the rage you feel at this often easily prevented event. Like you, we are New Yorkers who live and work in this city, and could just as easily fall victim to one of these completely avoidable construction accidents.
