Scaffold Collapse Kills Three

摘要

The March 23 collapse of a mast-climber scaffold at an 11-story office-building project in downtown Raleigh killed three workers. The incident occurred at approximately 11 a.m., according to the project's general contractor, Choate Construction Co. According to news reports, crews with Associated Scaffolding, Raleigh, were preparing to dismantle the mast climbers when the system collapsed, while workers were still on the scaffold. The three workers killed were identified as Jose Erasmo Hernandez, 41; Jose Luis Lopez-Ramirez, 33; and Anderson Almeida, 3 3. A fourth worker, identi- fied as Elmer Guevara, was injured. Mike Hampton, chief operations officer with Choate, said the cause of the accident was still unknown. A statement posted on Associated Scaffolding's website stated, "We at Associated Scaffolding are working with OSHA as they determine the cause of this tragic event." The Occupational Safety and Health Division of the North Carolina Dept. of Labor is leading the investigation. The Charter Square project, with construction costs estimated at $63 million, was scheduled to open later this year, according to reports.