What are the Fatal Four in Construction?

The Fatal Four are responsible for more than half the fatal construction site injuries in Florida. Even if these victims survive, they usually sustain permanent injuries. Since these injuries are (for the most part) easily preventable, compensation is usually very high in these cases. When one of the Fatal Four construction accidents strikes, it’s almost always because the company puts profits before people.

These benefits usually include lost wage replacement and medical bill payment. However, insurance companies do not hand out these benefits like toys on Christmas morning. Instead, a Tampa workers’ compensation lawyer must build a strong foundation and diligently advocate for job injury victims throughout the long, and often frustrating, workers’ compensation process.

Falls

Space is at a premium in the Tampa Bay area. Therefore, most buildings go up instead of out. A fall from as little as four stories above ground is usually fatal.

Simple fall prevention equipment includes reinforced scaffolding guardrails and safety harnesses. Frequently, bosses don’t install reinforced guardrails, because of the extra cost. Frequently, they don’t properly reinforce the need for workers to use safety harnesses.

Safety harnesses marginally decrease daily output. The nickels and dimes quickly add up to quarters and dollars. So, rather than fall behind schedule, employers don’t encourage workers to use harnesses.

The language barrier is an issue as well. Many Tampa Bay-area workers speak a language other than English at home and their self-reported English skills are “less than good.” So, if a boss gives a safety lecture, it may not be in a language all workers understand.

Electrocution

Sometimes, electrocution injuries overlap with fall injuries. An arc blast usually throws a victim through the air, and many times, off a high place as well.

Electrocutions could also cause burns. Contact with a surge of electricity triggers the no-let-go response, which is an involuntary muscle contraction. As a result, the victim continually touches a surface that’s hotter than the surface temperature of the sun.

Once again, basic precautions, such as double-grounded and insulated outlets, could prevent most or all electrocution injuries.

Caught Between

In Florida, this phrase usually applies to construction site motor vehicle collisions or construction trench collapses.

Large, heavy construction vehicles usually have very poor site lines. At the same time, busy construction sites are a hotbed of activity. The combination often results in a “caught between” pedestrian injury. A worker is caught between a vehicle and a fixed object, like a retaining wall.

Other Tampa Bay construction workers are caught between the sides of an earthen trench when it suddenly collapses.

Once again, a Tampa workers’ compensation lawyer can usually obtain considerable benefits in these cases. Driver error causes 98 percent of vehicle collisions and construction trenches are relatively easy to reinforce.

Struck By

We mentioned the amount of force a falling human body creates above. The same principle applies to dropped tools. Whether or not they’re wearing hard hats, if objects dropped from above hit pedestrians on the ground, those pedestrians usually die.

Once again, instruction is the key to preventing these injuries. Workers must understand that a wrench or other tool is like a handgun. Never put it in your hand unless you intend to use it.

 Reach Out to a Dedicated Hillsborough County Lawyer 

Injury victims are entitled to important financial benefits. For a confidential consultation with an experienced workers’ compensation lawyer in Tampa, contact Kobal Law. Virtual, home, and hospital visits are available.

Source:

osha.com/blog/fatal-four