Dive Brief:
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OSHA is investigating three construction companies whose crews were building a Jersey City highrise earlier this month when a tape measure dropped off of a worker’s tool belt, fell 50 stories, struck a deliveryman on the head and killed him.
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The 58-year-old man was delivering sheetrock to the job site and was not wearing a hard hat when he stopped to talk to a colleague just before the tape measure fell on his head, according to a police report.
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Work on the building stopped after the incident, but has since resumed. OSHA has six months to complete its investigation.
Dive Insight:
After the accident, at least one sign appeared on the job site saying hard hats are required, according to The Jersey Journal. Such a protection is considered by OSHA as a “control measure” designed to prevent this kind of accident.
OSHA classifies this kind of accident as a “struck by” incident and has noted that one of the most common causes of death on construction sites involves workers who are struck by some sort of object.
An OSHA pamphlet on “struck by” hazards admonishes crews that “there are ways to prevent or reduce injuries from these types of hazards” and places responsibility on them to protect themselves. “Workers must ensure that control measures are in place to ensure their safety,” The Jersey Journal quotes the brochure as saying.