The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) recently fined SGL Constructors—the joint venture for the I-4 Ultimate project in Orlando—for $15,150 as the result of a worker death and safety violations on the jobsite.
The agency cited the joint venture—which includes Skanska USA, Granite Construction and The Lane Construction Corp.—for two violations, one of which was deemed to be serious and one "other". The serious violation places a fine of $13,260 for SGL, while the other fine is $1,895.
According to Construction Dive, OSHA issued the fines and citations against SGL Constructors after a 59-year-old worker was hit in the head and killed by a 20-ft-long steel pipe while trying to load it onto a flatbed trailer on Feb. 4.
The serious citation was for the violation of OSHA regulation (5)(a)(1), which requires employers to provide each employee with a workplace free from hazards that cause or are likely to cause death or serious physical harm to employees. OSHA says at the company yard site on Feb. 4, the employee was exposed to a struck-by and crash-by hazard while standing in the path of a steel pipe.
The other citation was for a violation of Part 1904, Subpart A, which sets recording and reporting requirements for occupational injuries and illnesses.
The worker who died after the Feb. 4 incident was the fourth worker killed since the 21-mile project began in 2015. Just a few days after that incident, three workers on the I-4 Ultimate project were injured after falling 15 ft from an elevated platform while pouring cement.
Struck-by hazards are among OSHA's cited "Fatal Four" for construction safety hazards. In 2017, 8.2% of jobsite deaths in construction were attributed to being struck by an object. The agency recommends workers never position themselves between moving and fixed objects on a jobsite in addition to always wearing high-visibility clothing near equipment and vehicles in order to prevent struck-by incidents.
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SOURCE: OSHA / Construction Dive
