Dive Brief:

• A worker for Coastal Masonry was killed by a 70-foot fall from a condominium project in Miami last spring.
• The Occupational Safety and Health Administration decided after an investigation that the company, based in Pompano Beach, Fla., had committed a willful violation by not assuring a worker could not fall more than 6 feet and a serious violation by not checking for defective safety equipment.
• The agency levied a fine of $77,000, which the company has about two weeks to contest.

Dive Insight:

The penalty assessed against Coastal is yet another example of OSHA's attention to finding and trying to eliminate fall hazards in workplaces. The agency has made fall prevention a priority in its routine inspections and falls are something it has sought to punish following accident investigations.