Construction Accident | Phoenix Personal Injury Law Blog
5 Steps to Take After a Construction Accident
Working in construction means you get the chance to make a major difference in the world, whether you are helping to build affordable housing, reinforcing a damaged bridge, or creating safer roadways. But it is also one of the most dangerous industries in Arizona, with studies showing an 11% increase in fatal work injuries in 2019, including at least 23 deaths in the construction industry.
Florida Footbridge Accident Raises Questions of Liability
On March 15th, a pedestrian bridge collapsed in Miami, Florida, killing at least six people just five days after it was swung into place. Since it happened so recently, we still don’t know much about why the incident occurred or who’s to blame. But one thing is certain: this is a case that isn’t going away anytime soon. In fact, several lawsuits have already been filed by families and friends of the victims.
Surprise City Construction Accidents
Surprise advanced to become Arizona’s fastest growing city, ahead of Gilbert, Peoria, and Chandler, in 2016. According to the Phoenix Business Journal, it was the only Arizona city in the top 10 fastest growing cities in the nation. The rest were in Texas.
Surprise is located about 45 minutes away from Phoenix and offers hiking and wildlife viewing at White Tank Mountain Regional Park, fishing at Surprise Lake and several golf courses such as the Desert Springs Golf Course. The city was founded in 1938 as a small farming community.
Because of Surprise’s rapid growth, construction crews are everywhere. Construction vehicles, building materials and even road blocks are becoming more prevalent sights through the entire city.
The Difference Between Injury Law and Worker’s Compensation Law
When you’re injured on a construction site, you expect your employer to help you, but sometimes your employer or the workers compensation insurance company for your company, may make it difficult for you to receive the benefits to which you are entitled, after you’ve been injured on the job. When that happens, you might feel like your head is spinning or that you have nowhere to turn for help. When you can’t get the compensation you need to pay for your medical care or to pay your bills while you’re unable to work, you may think that there is no way out and that your recovery is doomed. But the truth is that you don’t have to go through the pain and suffering, or the confusion of the process alone, although you do have to go through the process.
Arizona Construction Site Safety Attorneys
If you were involved in an Arizona construction site accident and sustained serious injuries you’re going to want to know what to do and who to turn to for help. The trouble is that when you’re hurt on the job you expect your employer to help you and to do whatever is necessary to help you make a full recovery, but this isn’t always the way that it goes. In fact, in many cases, construction workers who are injured on the job find that their employers are less than helpful, may try to make the accident appear to be the worker’s own fault, and that even workers’ compensation paperwork becomes an insurmountable task.
How to Prevent Construction Accidents in Arizona
Every year, we hear multiple reports of individuals being involved in Arizona construction accidents as employees, contractors, or even homeowners. Many individuals are injured by tools like drills or nail guns and contribute significantly to the numbers of people who visit the emergency room each year. According to the Arizona Department of Health Services (AZDHS), more than 29,100 individuals visit emergency rooms in Arizona annually as a result of being injured by a cutting or piercing instrument. In addition, construction accidents contribute heavily to the roughly 50,900 emergency room visits made by people who are struck by or against an object.
Prevention Tips for Arizona Construction Accidents
If you are doing construction, whether at work or on the side, it’s important to know how to keep yourself safe from being involved in an Arizona construction accident. Some of the best ways to stay safe on the job include the following:
Excavator Safety
Working on a construction site can be fulfilling work. You spend your days outside. You know that your work will help a business and the economy to grow. And you’ll even see the fruits of your labor on a daily basis when you pass by the finished site. But working on a construction site can also be dangerous, especially when you work on a site that involves a significant amount of excavation work. Even more so when you’re the operator of the excavation equipment.
That’s why it’s important for all construction workers who work on excavation sites to understand the importance of safety. You never know when your experience and your ability to judge a situation could save you or someone you work with from sustaining serious or even life threatening injuries.
Equipment Safety: Backing Up
A large majority of accidents that happen on construction sites happen because one of the workers engages in careless actions that lead to the injury of another person or a group of people who are also working on the site. That’s why it is so important for all construction companies, construction foremen, and construction workers to take safety seriously, especially when it comes to large pieces of construction equipment.
The most important thing that construction workers at all levels can remember is that once a large piece of equipment starts to malfunction or something goes awry with your equipment, there’s very little time to correct the error, if any, before a disaster occurs. While it’s important to learn how to recognize a pending tragedy and how to get out of the way fast enough to avoid being caught up in it, it’s equally as important to learn how to avoid disaster.
Phoenix Construction Accident Injures Worker When Digging Trench
We are deeply concerned for the construction worker who was seriously injured in a Phoenix construction trench accident recently. The accident happened when a group of construction workers were digging a trench at a construction site near 29th Avenue and Northern Avenue. One worker was standing on loose soil outside the trench when the ground gave way and the man fell more than eight feet down into the trench. Soil falling and burying the worker forced him an additional seven feet down into the trench. He was rescued by the Fire Department. The worker was seriously injured. We hope that he is currently healing from his injuries and that he is able to go back to work soon.
How to Avoid a Phoenix Construction Accident
Construction workers are in danger every day of being involved in a Phoenix construction accident due to the nature of their work. While construction workers are responsible for their own safety, the companies they work for must also take responsibility to keep their employees safe on the job. In order to avoid a serious incident and the resulting injuries, construction companies should consider the following tips.
How Arizona Construction Crane Accidents Happen
If you’re a construction worker then you know how easily a situation can get out of hand and lead to a serious crane accident in Phoenix. Crane operators have an incredibly dangerous and high-stress job that can lead to multiple different types of injuries. Here are just some of the most injuries and accidents that befall even seasoned crane operators on construction sites:
- The crane operator is not properly latched to the vertical ladder and falls during either ascent or descent from their post.
- The crane comes apart due to negligence during the construction of the crane itself.
- The crane is tipped forward, pushed over onto its side, or spun around due to extreme weather conditions, such as severe windstorms.
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During a free consultation, we will look at the important aspects of your case, answer your questions, and explain your legal rights and options clearly. All submissions are confidentially reviewed by Mark Breyer.
Confidentially reviewed by Attorney Mark Breyer