The construction industry in the United States has the distinction of having the third highest number of worker deaths in the country.  Each year, construction accidents kill more than 1,000 construction workers in the US.  Employers are required by federal, state and local statutes to provide safe working conditions for construction workers, but that doesn't stop thousands of construction accidents from occurring each year.  The accidents range from chemical exposure to defective machinery accidents.

Types of Construction Accidents

Falls

Falls on construction sites are responsible for close to 300 construction worker deaths each year.  Workers can fall from elevator shafts, frameworks, ladders, scaffolding, or canopies, through an unstable floor, or from heavy construction machinery. Workers can slip through scaffolding or fall when planks on the scaffolding give way.  These are entirely preventable accidents, and should not occur when proper OSHA safety regulations are followed.

Collapse

Construction sites commonly require the excavation of trenches and the erection of scaffolding. Defective scaffolding or scaffolding that is incorrectly erected can collapse, severely injuring construction workers caught on the scaffolding or working below. Walls can tip and fall, and large mounds of soil that have been stacked at the edge of a trench can slide into the trench, burying workers underneath the soil debris.  Whenever there are conditions that make a collapse accident possible, employers are required by OSHA regulations to take safety precautions, such as shoring up embankments and providing body belts and harnesses to workers.

Fires and explosion

Construction sites may require the use of explosive devices to flatten land and facilitate work.  When safe procedures for the operation of these devices are not followed, the resulting explosions can have devastating consequences for construction workers.  Electrocution and malfunctioning of wiring and equipment is another common cause of construction fire accidents.

Machinery Accidents

A construction site is full of complicated pieces of machinery that need proper maintenance, and trained and supervised operations.  Most machinery and equipment accidents that occur on a construction site are the result of lack of training to operate them properly, failure to take proper safety precautions, as well as the failure to inspect equipment regularly. Injuries can occur not only during operation of the equipment, but also during routine maintenance procedures.  Managers and supervisors at the site are required to oversee the handling of heavy machinery on the construction site to prevent construction accidents from occurring.

Defective Tool Accidents

Defective tools can cause serious accidents that injure or kill construction workers. Tools with non-existent or malfunctioning safety switches and protective covers intended to protect workers can be the cause of a dangerous accident. Employers are responsible for ensuring that safe, regularly inspected and maintained tools are available to workers.  Tool defects can also be the fault of the tool manufacturer. In such cases, even when properly maintained and operated, dangerous or defective tools can lead to serious and sometimes fatal construction worker injuries.

Other Construction Accidents

Nail guns that are commonly used by construction workers are another source  of injuries on the site.  The injuries resulting from nail gun shots are often very similar to those received by a gun shot, and include eye injuries, head injuries, and even death. Lack of training to use  these tools properly, failure to provide safety training programs, unsafe conditions for nail gun use, and ricocheting of nails are all factors that can cause serious nail gun related injuries on a site. Trench accidents can involve flooding, touching of electrical wires and cave-ins, while welding accidents can cause burns, cuts, and eye injuries.

Liability for Construction Accidents

Damages for injuries sustained on a construction site can be claimed from various parties, depending on their role in contributing to or failing to prevent an accident.  Employers, managers and supervisors, equipment manufacturers, suppliers of material and engineers can all be party to a damages claim arising from a construction accident.