Inspection Detail

Inspection: 311241798 - V & J Concrete, Inc.

Inspection Information - Office: Department Of Labor, Licensing, And Regulation Division Of Labor And Industry Maryland Occupational Safety And Health

Investigation Summary

On June 11, 2007, Employee #1 was rebuilding a dwelling that was in poor repair. Its walls, floors, and foundation were deteriorated, which led local safety code officials to get involved. As the owner of this dwelling, Employee #1 was instructed by the code officials to either repair or remove the dwelling, due to its structural state. He had intended to use the house as a weekend property. Employee #1 became the contractor in the project and recruited local laborers off and on for about two months. A majority of the work occurred on the weekends. Through this work, the floor and old foundation was demolished and rebuilt, with its concrete block foundation was raised, floor joists removed, and jacking yellow nylon straps secured to the wall on the driveway side of the building. During one of the inspections by the local safety code officials, Employee #1 was instructed to raise the concrete block foundation further. In order to do this, the nylon straps that were previously installed had to be removed. For removal, the straps were connected to a rebar that was driven into the gravel driveway and the new sheathing and the anchor straps were removed. While Employee #1 was jacking the building up, one worker was in the front area near a door and a second worker was located on the second story near a window. As the house was raised, it began to collapse. The worker that was located near the door at ground level dove from inside the house, sustaining only a minor leg laceration. The worker that was on the second floor of the dwelling jumped out the window onto the driveway, suffering a broken ankle. Both were treated and released at McReady Hospital. However, Employee #1, who had fractures on his legs, back, and sternum, was killed. The accident investigation revealed that no engineering survey of the structure, blueprints or construction plans had been provided or used during the work. Also, the ground floor joists had been almost completely removed, as well as exterior sheathing. Further, shoring or bracing was done with the nylon straps that had been removed when the collapse occurred.

Keywords: FRACTURE, BUILDING, CONSTRUCTION, BACK, UNSTABLE SURFACE, STRUCK BY, LEG