Personal Injury Law

Missouri construction site accident kills one man and injures another

By Ryan Bradley, Esq.

A Missouri construction accident killed Ryan Goodman, 35, and injured Shane Wagener, 30, last week, temporarily bringing a halt to construction on the new Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts in Kansas City.

According to officials cited in the Kansas City Star, a portable boom lift with a basket designed to raise workers up to 100 feet in the air fell over while the two men were inside. The basket was extended to around 50 feet while the men were placing beams on the new building before it fell. Both men fell away from the basket as the equipment tipped over.

Goodman and Wagener were both taken to local hospitals. Goodman died at the hospital while Wagener suffered serious injuries and is still being treated.

Crews removed the lift from the accident site yesterday, but investigators from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration are continuing to investigate the cause of this tragic accident.

The site, operated by J.E. Dunn Construction Co., has not had any injuries or serious incidents in the past. The men were employed by Midwest Steel.

These types of crane accidents kill more than 80 workers every year, according to data from OSHA. We reported on a similar St. Louis construction site accident earlier this year.

The big question in all construction site injury accidents is whether they could have been prevented. If certain safety procedures had been followed or if faulty machinery had been inspected, would the accident have occurred?

It may take months of investigation, but the answer will be revealed if the best experts are called in to investigate. Experienced construction accident lawyers will have the connections and knowledge to determine if negligence caused the needless death of a worker.

Full post as published by Missouri Accident Lawyer Blog on November 15, 2009 (boomark / email).