Construction worker injured when roof of new Irving complex caves in

A four-story section and roof collapsed on an apartment complex that was under construction on Lake Carolyn Parkway in Las Colinas Wednesday afternoon. The new apartment complex was being built in the rapidly growing Irving, Texas area. At present, it appears that the roof collapsed first, pancaking down onto the floors beneath, but that has not been confirmed.

One worker was injured in the roof collapse and taken to the hospital in serious condition. Fire rescue personnel had to use a ladder to rescue him. The Texas construction accident injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC note that the extent of his injuries and the cause of the roof cave-in have not been disclosed. (Frank Heinz, nbcdfw.com; and myfoxdfw.com, 4/3/14)

Workers are getting injured almost every day in U.S. construction or demolition accidents. On Wednesday morning for example, 4 workers received transport to Atlanta Medical Center with back injures and leg trauma after a deck they were working on collapsed. The deck was attached to a vacant house on Ebenezer Road in Fayette County. Two of the workers were on the Fayette County deck that collapsed. And two others were under it when it fell on them. Reports don’t specify whether the deck separated from the house and then fell or whether a guardrail failure and partial collapse of the planking might have occurred.

Our Texas construction accident injury lawyers have pointed out on other occasions the legal duty of employers to provide a safe working environment for their employees. That includes providing safety equipment, proper training, and notice regarding safe work practices and procedures. But construction workers continue to pile building materials on roofs of partially completed buildings, even though it’s widely recognized by industry safety experts as a major hazard.

And workers, sometimes at the behest of impatient property owners or employers, continue to try and demolish unstable buildings quickly with heavy equipment when they should be taken down carefully by hand. Heavy equipment does make the building fall more quickly, often to deadly effect, as was seen in Philadelphia this past summer when a building being negligently demolished collapsed into a Salvation Army store, killing 6.

Click the link to learn about construction safety practices employers should follow.

Pattern of decay around Oakdale building collapse site in Philly

Yet another series of Philadelphia building collapses has been taking place. The recent fall of the wall of an abandoned brick row house at Myrtlewood and Oakdale in the Strawberry Mansion neighborhood left one man with an injured shoulder when debris from the collapse struck him. The debris also destroyed a nearby car. One resident of the neighborhood mentioned that the corner was a gathering place for local children, who only the day before had been playing football there. Our building collapse injury attorneys point out that fortunately they weren’t there when the wall fell, or there would have been many more injuries.

A spokeswoman for the city’s L&I (Licenses and Inspections) division said they were unaware of any injuries from the collapse. She went on to mention that if the man had been taken to the hospital before L&I arrived on the scene, they wouldn’t have known about the injury.

What, they don’t ask? Wouldn’t you hate to be the spokesperson for L&I? How creative would you have to be to find plausible explanations for some of the gaps in their record? For instance, several recent news articles had mentioned that L&I says it can’t give a count on the number of building collapses in Philadelphia because that data either doesn’t exist or is inaccessible. And apparently if L&I doesn’t actually see an injured person on the scene, that constitutes a no-injury accident.

The L&I spokesperson also said the department had received complaints about the unsafe abandoned row house as early as July 2006 and had sealed the building. On Friday just before the collapse, when it was becoming apparent to local residents that the building was probably in imminent danger of falling, someone made a dangerous building complaint to L&I. The department was going to inspect it in the following week. But the building could not await their convenience and collapsed in the meantime, injuring Pele Lewis.

The building collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC note that the a decaying block on Cleveland Street also presents danger. Several vacant buildings are in alarming states of disrepair. On at least one, a resident said you can see through to the sky from the outside of the building. Another house has a tree growing out of it. And reportedly at least 8 building collapses occurred in the area in the past month. Some of the buildings are owned by the Philadelphia Housing Development Corp., and may threaten the stability of adjacent houses that are still inhabited. L&I says it doesn’t pursue court actions against unsafe buildings owned by the Philadelphia Housing Development Corp. (philly.com, 3/12 and 3/19/14) So what are residents to do?

It’s a sad state of affairs in one of our nation’s oldest, most historical cities. A city that was at the center of the nation’s move for independence and a Constitution that has served as the model for others all over the world.

Part of the problem is the tendency of landlords to simply abandon buildings that have become too costly to maintain. Our building collapse injury attorneys understand that it might cost tens of thousands of dollars to safely demolish a building. So landlords make strategic abandonments of the properties. The city can’t find them to pursue actions against them. L&I only has a budget of $6 million, and already 600 properties are on the list of those needed to be demolished asap.

Some people feel that better ways to hold landlords accountable would help solve the problem. But how would you implement that, when it’s so easy to travel and move away, leaving a bad investment behind? It costs money also to find and pursue negligent landlords too.

Decaying infrastructure and failing buildings are a growing problem in America’s aging cities. A huge number of buildings, bridges, and roads have reached the time when they need to be repaired or replaced. But the economy (using that word loosely) has been grinding to a halt and the money’s just not there to do what needs to be done.

We may be focusing on Philadelphia and L&I because they’ve become the most prominent national example of the dangers of building collapses and ineffective structural safety management. But they’re not alone. Parts of Baltimore, for instance, looked far worse last time I was in that area. But Baltimore wasn’t the site of the tragic building collapse into a Salvation Army store this summer that killed 6 innocent people.

What is clear is that the need for solutions to the problem of aging infrastructure is increasing nationwide. Bright minds with novel and cost-effective approaches to rebuilding and repairing infrastructure will be needed.

In the meantime, learn about what you need to do if you or a loved one suffers injury from an unexpected structural failure. Browse our building collapse injury attorneys’ structural collapse practice area and use our internal search bar to find the information you need. Our FAQ responses, informational articles, and blogs cover a full range of building collapse and injury issues, including causes and how to prevent them. And feel free to download our complimentary report at the book icon on this web page to learn how to inspect and help prevent collapsing structures on your own home.

Piling Heavy Steel might have caused Boston Building Collapse

Preliminary investigations led to the conclusion that a heavy load of steel, perhaps rebar, placed on the unfinished 12th floor of the high-rise apartment tower on Stuart Street might have led to the precipitous Boston building collapse that injured three people last week. A Boston Fire Department spokesman said that the metal decking and beams of the 12th floor collapsed under the weight of the materials. Our construction collapse injury lawyers note that the debris crashed through several other unfinished floors before finally coming to a halt on the fifth floor, the highest floor to have a poured concrete surface.

The general contractor on the site, John Moriarty & Associates of Winchester, Massachusetts, reportedly has a total of $44,283 in OSHA fines for 21 safety violations dating back to 2005. (bostonherald.com, 3/21/14)

The initial post by our construction collapse injury lawyers at Denena Points, PC on the subject of the sudden building collapse in Boston had mentioned that construction materials piled in the unfinished building might have led to the collapse. Workers piling construction materials for their convenience in incomplete and inadequately supported areas is actually a common contributing cause to partial and total structural failures in buildings under construction.

The Boston high-rise collapse accident demonstrates the critical importance of properly calculating loads, adequate bracing, and strong connections between supporting structural members. Building experts often warn against loading building floors and roofs under construction with building materials and equipment because they could drastically overload the supporting structures past their intended live and dead loads. But it remains a common practice in the construction industry and a frequent cause of injuries and fatalities.

OSHA prepared a report , Structural Collapses during Construction, Lessons Learned, 1990 – 2008, by Mohammad Ayub, P.E., S.E., to identify the major causes of construction collapses and injuries in order to try and prevent them in the future. The report concluded that:

80% of structural collapse accidents were due to construction errors, and
62% of the accidents related to steel structures like scaffolds and platforms.

Specific causes of partial and total collapse accidents included:

• Placement of unplanned additional “dead load” over single and double tees;
• Inadequate temporary connections of structural members;
• Placement of construction materials over roof members;
• Placement of brick loads on different tiers of scaffold framing that overstressed the frames and caused the scaffolds to collapse;
• Formwork support systems that were under-proportioned for both the horizontal and the vertical loads; and
• Concrete masonry wall designs that were inadequate for the loads placed on them both during construction and upon completion.
• Despite the mounting statistics and evidence of the danger of the practice of piling construction materials in partially-completed buildings, the overwhelming convenience provided by the dangerous practice leads to its ongoing use.

Learn about your options for winning fair financial compensation after you’ve been injured in a construction collapse

Contact our construction collapse injury lawyers at 713-807-9500 or reach us through our online contact form to schedule a free, no obligation initial legal consultation. Our dedicated construction collapse injury lawyers know building codes and inspection requirements as well as how to spot weaknesses where poor building techniques or materials led to structural failure. Employers are responsible for ensuring a safe working environment for their workers. Part of that obligation includes properly training workers in safe building practices, and ensuring that safety rules and procedures are known and followed.

Our knowledgeable investigation after a structural collapse injury could help you pinpoint the precise causes of the collapse as well as the proper parties to hold financially accountable for your needless injuries. Contact us today; we’re here to help. The law firm of Denena Points, PC has a 14-year track record of helping clients succeed in their injury claims against builders, manufacturers, and other negligent parties.

Boston Building Partially Collapses under its own Weight, Injuring 2

A high-rise residential tower under construction In Boston’s Chinatown on Stuart Street partially collapsed on Thursday around 8 a.m., injuring two people. A Deputy Fire Chief told reporters that a dead load on the 12th floor collapsed and pancaked down to the 5th floor. The construction collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC mention that the “dead” load is basically just the weight of the building itself. The “live” load is anything you later put on or in the building (like residents and their belongings).

Photos of the partial building collapse showed several floors broken down the center and collapsed into a mound of debris several floors below. One of the injured victims sustained a serious head injury, while the other injured person had minor injuries and did not require overnight hospitalization. Authorities including OSHA are investigating. Structural engineers will determine when the building can resume construction. (CBS Boston, 3/20/14)

CBT Architects designed the high-rise residential tower. The Avalon Bay real estate company is heading up the project.

What Caused the Stuart Street Building to Partially Collapse?

There is no definitive word yet on what caused the 12th floor to fail and collapse. Our construction collapse injury attorneys note that many things could have caused the structural failure, including:

Poor design that involved inadequate structural supports or an inadequate number of joists or other floor supports.
Poor construction, such as use of substandard materials or setting concrete under the wrong conditions.
Inadequate bracing of walls and floors as the construction proceeded.
Piling heavy construction materials on a 12th floor that did not yet have adequate bracing and support.

If the floors of the high-rise on Stuart Street can’t support their own weight even while the building is still under construction, imagine the possible danger as residents later move in, fill their apartments with heavy furniture, and invite their friends over for lively housewarming parties. We wonder if construction should simply “resume.” It seems like it would be better to remove the compromised floors altogether and rebuild in a sturdier fashion.

Structural Collapses can lead to Severe Injuries and Death

As this accident in Boston’s Chinatown demonstrates, structural collapse can lead to severe injuries and sometimes even fatal injuries. But when you or your loved one have been injured, proving the actual cause of the injury is a highly technical matter involving complex engineering concepts and detailed medical knowledge.

You need an experienced construction collapse injury attorney to help you gather the evidence you need before it disappears, find qualified expert witnesses to testify on your behalf, build a strong claim, aggressively advocate for your interests, and present your case to opposing parties and the court in a clear and convincing manner.

Contact the Dedicated Construction Collapse Injury Attorneys at Denena Points, PC for a Free and Confidential Legal Consultation

Your initial consultation is free and without obligation and will allow us to explore the details of the case with you and evaluate your potential eligibility for a full financial recovery for your needless injuries. Your claim might include medical expenses, the costs of the future medical care you will need, lost wages, and other damages. We are among the relative handful of injury attorneys nationwide to have hands-on, practical experience successfully resolving complex structural collapse injury cases. Contact us anytime through our online contact form or reach us direct at 713-807-9500. Put our experience to work for your family’s benefit.

Conflicting descriptions as Philly demo job falls into other buildings

Descriptions conflict regarding the latest Philly demolition job to suddenly collapse into and damage adjacent buildings. Our building collapse attorneys remember reading a few weeks ago that the historic Old Shirt Corner building in Old City was to be torn down. But some local residents are saying they knew nothing of the impending demolition and were frightened and taken aback when the building was suddenly torn down, taking some adjacent properties with it.

The Old Shirt Corner building at 3rd and Market Streets came down suddenly in a cloud of debris. Demolition of the 19th century structure sent debris onto a middle building and also falling into a structure on the corner, which then collapsed.

The general contractor said he would have liked to take the old building down a brick at a time (as would have been safer) but that it didn’t occur that way. One version is staunchly calling the damage to multiple buildings a controlled demolition while another version is openly saying that the demolition wasn’t meant to happen that way.

Does this Demolition Collapse remind You of the Deadly Collapse into the Salvation Army Store?

Basically, as demolition workers tried to remove the top two floors of 257 Market Street (the same street where the deadly demolition that crushed a Salvation Army store occurred), a portion of the four-story building buckled and fell into 259 Market Street. Then 259 Market crumbled under the weight of 257, fell through sidewalk protection, and collapsed partly onto Third Street. We’re hesitant to speculate what an “uncontrolled” demolition might do.

Fortunately, no one seems to have been hurt by this most recent building collapse on Market Street in Philadelphia. But the damage to multiple buildings during the demolition amply illustrates the great dangers involved in taking down older buildings. The demolitions are almost always unpredictable. The incident further underscores the clear disregard for safety of those who tried to take down the building that collapsed into the Salvation n Army store in June by removing key structural supports and then going in with excavators and heavy equipment, a recipe for deadly disaster.

Learn about Your Legal rights and Options if You’ve been Injured in a Building Collapse

Contact the experienced building collapse attorneys at Denena Points, PC for a free, no obligation initial legal consultation. We’ll review the specifics of your accident with you and help you evaluate your eligibility for a full financial recovery for your needless injuries. We’re among the relatively few injury attorneys nationwide to have actual, hands-on experience resolving complex structural collapse injury cases. Put our more than 12 years of experience to work for your benefit. Call us at 713-807-9500 or fill out our online contact form to schedule your free consultation.

Death Toll Rises in as yet Unexplained NYC Gas Explosion

The death toll has risen to 8 in the NYC gas explosion that hasn’t yet been fully explained. Now that the debris has been cleared and the rescue effort completed, workers will be able to begin a more comprehensive test on the local gas pipes to perhaps see where and how the leak occurred. Our building collapse injury attorneys note that scores have been injured, but authorities now say that all of the missing have been accounted for.

Although residents said they smelled gas before the explosion last Wednesday and complained about it, a search of the city’s 311 and 911 calls has yet to yield any complaints prior to the one that was received about 15 minutes before the explosion at 116th Street and Park Avenue occurred in Manhattan’s East Harlem neighborhood. The call came from a local resident who smelled the gas outside of a building. But authorities have not yet determined whether the gas leak was inside or outside of a building. Tests of the gas main in the explosion crater failed to yield a possible leak source, with no obvious punctures or ruptures. (Verena Dobnik and Jonathan Lemire, Yahoo News, 3/17/14)

Many of NYC’s gas mains are the old cast iron ones. The building collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC mention that the ones in East Harlem might date to 1897 like many in that area. But in the realm of aging infrastructure, I would tend to prefer cast iron over modern, brittle plastic pipes, which will degrade much faster. Apparently the one in the crater, for instance, survived the massive explosion and collapse of two multi-story buildings with no visible damage.

So far searches have failed to yield any clear problems in the local gas supply infrastructure. But it will be interesting to see what the full series of investigations finds as the cause of the gas explosion that led to the deadly collapse of two buildings. In the meantime, our hearts go out to the families and friends of the deceased and to the many injured victims of the terrible disaster at 116th Street and Park Avenue. Click the link to read more about the East Harlem building collapses associated with the explosion.

Philly Safety Agency Can’t or Won’t Say How Many Buildings Collapsed

Things keep looking worse and worse for the embattled Philly safety agency charged with preventing building collapses. The Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections (L&I) is the agency all other city agencies call to investigate when a structural collapse occurs. But our structural failure attorneys note that the agency either can’t or won’t say how many buildings have collapsed in recent years.

The horrific collapse of a Market Street building into a Salvation Army store in June brought the issue of structural instabilities in Philly to national attention. That disaster, the result of a badly conducted demolition, killed 6 and injured 13. The contractor operating an excavator at the time of the collapse has been charged with murder. Since then, news reports have provided regular reports of further Philadelphia collapses, at least one more of them fatal. That was the Center City collapse of a balcony fire escape a few weeks ago. The three people on the balcony fell over 30 feet. A man in his 20s was killed by the tragic fall, and two women sustained broken backs from the balcony collapse and now must undergo costly, long-term therapies and rehabilitations.

In addition, as an in-depth article by William Bender on philly.com (3/6/14) reports, there have been several other recent building collapses:

• Collapse of a house two months after the Market Street collapse into the Salvation Army store that forced the evacuation of a group home for the disabled. (The structural failure attorneys at Denena Points, PC remark that the pattern of structural failures indicates that it’s disproportionately affecting lower income areas.)
• A row house in September that displaced residents on either side. We reiterate that, as the collapse into the Salvation Army store clearly demonstrates, damage doesn’t always confine itself to the building’s own footprint; very often it affects and damages neighboring buildings, sidewalks, and streets.
• A West Philadelphia home that collapsed three weeks later.
• At least 4 buildings just in the last month, including two that collapsed on the very same day.

It’s only natural that given the ongoing reports of serious structural failures, people should want to know the numbers on how many have fallen in recent years. Philadelphia residents particularly might like to know which neighborhoods experience the greatest dangers of sudden structural collapses, and whether the problem has been getting worse or possibly better over recent years. But inquiries on that topic are met with stubborn resistance. Our structural failure attorneys emphasize that such resistance won’t disguise the problem. The ongoing plague of building collapses speaks for itself.

Yet the ongoing resistance has taken various forms:

• A ‘blue ribbon” commission investigating L&I that includes a structural engineer and a disaster response expert has apparently met with resistance. According to the philly.com report, L&I says its “cannot determine how many buildings have collapsed in recent years” because the incident descriptions are “buried in an unsearchable database.” We ask: what is the use of an unsearchable database? Or is burying the incident reports its purpose? How is the agency charged with responding to, investigating, and preventing structural collapses supposed to do its job adequately if it can’t determine how many buildings are collapsing or where they’re collapsing to analyze problematic trends? That just doesn’t make a bit of sense.
• Bennett Levin, who ran L&I a couple of decades ago in the mid-90s said he doubts that L&I is actually unable to produce building collapse records. He implies that the department could produce such records in the mid-90s (when generally database technology was less advanced). Philly.com’s report quoted him as saying in regards to the city’s L&I department: “You’re dealing with the KGB.” It seems likely he would know better than most; since he used to run the department.
• The Daily News tried to get a list of building collapses for the past 5 years. A spokesman for Mayor Nutter (we won’t comment on that name in regards to this perplexing circus of information hide and seek) told the Daily News to file a Right-to-Know request. Which was then denied by one of the city’s lawyers. The denial said that the records don’t exist and that the city isn’t required to compile or organize records in response to a request. (In other words, you have no right-to-know.) So our structural failure attorneys wonder why they even waste paper on the request form?
• Three months after the right-to-know request was met with a stone wall, an L&I spokeswoman said the agency did maintain records of building collapses. But apparently they’re organized by type of violation so that the uninitiated can’t easily obtain them. How Byzantine. How convenient for Philadelphia and its L&I department. Kafka could write a lovely novel based around L&I (if he were still writing). The spokeswoman later clarified that there are notes in the system “regarding the underlying cause” of the records (we’re presuming that means “building collapses”), but that these notes are not searchable and not retrievable. Then why add the notes in the first place? Isn’t that a patent waste of time? Not to mention the taxpayer dollars going towards paying for the time used to add the unsearchable and irretrievable notes?
• The City Controller, Alan Butkovitz, who we point out will be running for mayor in 2015 and also may have an agenda here, says that the stalling regarding L&I building collapse records is typical of an administration that he classifies as not transparent and with a marked tendency to clamp down on information. He said his department had to subpoena L&I because the agency refused to turn over information about building inspections. Later, the agency gave Butkovitz’s department access to the L&I database. Butkovitz said that the information found in the database “Doesn’t really support their initial contentions.” But unfortunately it’s unclear from the story what the initial contentions were or how the data doesn’t support it.
• Freelance journalist Andrew Johnson tried to obtain building collapse records going back 10 years. But after weeks of trying, he came up empty-handed. And he said that L&I spokeswoman Swanson insisted that “Market Street” (the fatal collapse into the Salvation Army store) “wasn’t a building collapse.” Seriously? What would one call it, pray tell?
• Mr. Johnson comments that first one would have to file a Right-to-Know request to find out the specific terms under which L&I classifies data. Then you would have to file other request(s) to ask for the information filed under those terms. And the data in William Bender’s article indicates that:

1.The requests might well be denied; and

2.The relevant information you needed might be in the notes that were both unsearchable and irretrievable.

The information gathering controversy would seem comical were it not for the many lives lost and endangered due to structural failures in Philadelphia.

The city responds that they have “responded quickly and fully” to requests from the grand jury Inspector General, the City Controller, the Special Investigating Committee to the Inspector General, and the Special Independent Advisory Commission. The city also says it has responded to thousands of media requests for information (though it doesn’t specify how it responded to the media requests).

The executive director of the blue ribbon commission mentioned earlier in this post suggests that there may be hope on the horizon for those who want to track building collapses in the city of Philadelphia. By the end of 2015, an electronic data reporting and sharing system called eCLIPSE (electronic Commercial Licensing, Inspection, and Permit Services Enterprise) is expected to be operational. The executive director doesn’t really clarify what that system’s capabilities or improvements will be; he simply implies that it will be better than the existing one. (Many things would, evidently.)

The structural failure attorneys at Denena Points, PC aren’t sanguine regarding the name of the new database; after all, an eclipse is the result of one body obscuring another to replace light with darkness. The imagery doesn’t bode well for people’s hopes regarding government “transparency.” (We merely point this out, hoping that our thoughts here are incorrect.) Click the link to learn about Mayor Nutter’s announcement regarding an increased budget and staff for L&I in the next fiscal year.

Philly reacts to spate of building collapses by hiring more L&I workers

Mayor Nutter of Philadelphia just announced that the city’s Licenses and Inspections (L&I) division, derided by many for lax enforcement and inadequate standards after the fatal Center City building collapse this summer, would receive a budget increase of $2 million to fund 31 additional staff members in the next fiscal year. (Jared Brey, philly.com, 3/6/14)

The building collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC note that these additional funds and staffers do not begin to make up for the major decrease in both since 2008. Since that time, the city’s funding of L&I decreased by almost one third: from $30 million to $22 million. And the department also decreased by about 80 staff members during that time.

The 31 new staffers will work in L&I’s emergency services unit. And recent news stories may indicate why. There are a lot of emergencies to respond to in Philadelphia related to matters under L&I jurisdiction. The Center City building collapse that killed 6 people in a Salivation Army store was the most deadly collapse to happen in Philadelphia within the year, but it was by no means the only structural collapse, nor the only deadly one. A young man died a few weeks ago when a fire escape balcony collapsed under him in Center City. And an abandoned residential building collapsed just days ago, sending debris flying and injuring two passers by. In one day, our building collapse injury attorneys point out that two building collapses occurred in the city.

And recent news reports have said that concerned individuals’ attempts to obtain numbers on just how many buildings have collapsed in Philadelphia over recent years have been stonewalled and hampered by a poor data storage and indexing system. Just the sequence of numerous collapses that have occurred since this summer demonstrate that the numbers must be alarming and indicative of an endemic problem with L&I enforcement and inspection.

L&I is supposed to be the agency entrusted with ensuring the safety of people in Philadelphia by enforcing the building, zoning, fire, and related codes in the city. L&I is in charge of issuing permits for demolition, renovation, and new construction and for conducting safety inspections and issuing violations for unsafe structural conditions.

It’s unfortunate that governments, their agencies, and their employees can sometimes claim sovereign immunity and escape liability for the needless injuries, deaths, and losses that lax performance might cause. This convenient escape clause means government agencies could waste taxpayer monies without performing the necessary safety functions to which they’re assigned. Why should they care about your safety when they don’t have to pay for injuries and deaths that might result from overlooked unsafe conditions?

When someone’s negligence injures you or your family, hold them accountable. Contact the experienced building collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC to learn how. Reach us by phone at 713-807-9500 or fill out our online contact form to schedule a free, no obligation initial legal consultation to discuss your case and assess your eligibility for a full financial recovery for your injuries.

8 Injured in Brooklyn from Another Demolition Related Bldg Collapse

Early investigations into a Brooklyn building collapse that injured 8 workers on Prospect Place found that workers were doing interior demolition work without permits. As the deadly collapse into a Salvation Army store in Center City Philadelphia this past summer demonstrates, demolition work on old, vacant buildings can be exceedingly dangerous and must be done carefully.

The top floor of a three-story building collapsed through the interior down to the first floor just after noon on Thursday. 8 workers received serious injuries, and one witness reported that at least one was bleeding from the head. Our building collapse injury attorneys emphasize that the FDNY sys that none of the injuries appeared to life threatening however.

News accounts mention that Eduard Katanov of 877 Belmont Group Realty purchased the building just two weeks ago for slightly over $300,000, and that Mr. Katanov is an agent for Reliable Home Sales in Brooklyn (Brooklyn Daily Eagle, 2/27/14). OSHA and the NYC Department of Buildings are conducting an ongoing investigation into the building collapse on Prospect Place and have shut down the worksite.

The building collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC reiterate that when renovating or demolishing older buildings, especially those that have been vacant for some time, it’s essential to get proper permits and have a structural engineer examine the building for any special dangers that might be present. Once demolition or renovation begins, another critical element is ensuring proper bracing of walls, ceilings, and floors as work proceeds.

On older buildings, structural members might have been cut without permission, connections may have loosened, and key elements of the structure might have separated from each other. Removing a part of a wall, a support member, or any other minor part of the unsafe building could trigger a sudden and unexpected collapse.

While our building collapse injury attorneys understand that obtaining proper permits from the NYC DOB can be a time-consuming and frustrating process, there’s a good reason that these permits are required. The building owner was seriously negligent in ordering his workers to proceed on the building demolition and renovation work without obtaining those permits and properly assessing the structural integrity of the three-story building.

Due to that negligence, the injured workers could be eligible to hold Mr. Katanov and his company financially accountable for all the injuries they’ve suffered. And they should. Employers have a duty to ensure safe workplace conditions for their workers and should not be allowed to shirk that duty to the detriment of their employees.

Contact the experienced building collapse injury attorneys at Denena Points, PC to learn more about your options after a serious structural collapse injury, and how to hold the party responsible financially liable for the needless harm you’ve suffered. We offer a completely free and confidential initial legal consultation. You have no obligation to hire an attorney. Reach us by phone at 713-807-9500 or just fill out our online contact form to schedule your free consultation.

How long will lack of financial feasibility compromise our safety?

Loads of lumber provided material to install additional supports at the University Village Apartments in Columbia, Missouri after a fatal balcony collapse killed a firefighter trying to help residents evacuate the building on Saturday. The balcony walkway collapse attorneys at Denena Points, PC note that as a safety precaution against further collapses and their tragic consequences, Missouri University (MU) hired a structural engineering firm to inspect all facilities owned or leased by MU.

The University had Considered Renovating or Replacing the Aging Complex as Early as 2008

The university apartment building where the balcony walkway collapsed had been built in 1956. The MU Residential Life department had reportedly been contemplating renovating or rebuilding the University Village Apartment complex, along with another older complex, since 2008. The Residential Life Director had spoken to developers about the project. But he said in 2012 that it was difficult to find a financially feasible way to undertake the project. (Joe Guszkowski, Columbia Missourian, 2/23/14)

Re-Prioritize Funds for Safety and Save Money lost in Costly Accidents

Unfortunately lack of financial feasibility has become an all too prevalent reason for not doing things over recent years. While understandable, safety problems with aging buildings and infrastructure will not go away simply because we can’t afford the money to correct them.

The economy, which had already been in slow decline for some time, saw the bottom drop out in 2008. Despite continuing assurances from government officials, usually around election times, the economy doesn’t show any real signs of true improvement.

And necessary renovation and rebuilding projects, along with new construction projects, languish all over the nation. While in older buildings, timbers continue to rot, hardware and support structures continue to rust and corrode, and existing weaknesses continue to grow. So buildings and their balconies, walkways, roofs, and stair rails suddenly collapse under the continuing strain of use.

Our balcony walkway collapse attorneys point out that this winter has seen a host of aging structures across the United States collapse totally or in part because the increased weight of snow, ice, and moisture buildup was more than they could take. The collapses result in building evacuations, road and sidewalk closures, injuries, and sometimes death. The costly consequences of the sudden structural collapses are frequently greater than the costs of building renovation, repair, or tear down would have been.

Generally speaking, adequate preventative maintenance or renovation is less costly than a single collapse accident with serious injuries or fatalities, just as preventative dental work is less costly and painful than the invasive repair and restoration work necessitated by years of dental neglect. Let’s re-prioritize around our limited budgets and make safety a top priority. The balcony walkway collapse attorneys at Denena Points, PC urge landlords and officials to step up and do necessary repairs and maintenance up front to avoid having to pay serious injury or wrongful death liability costs later.

Learn how to Prevent Balcony Collapses and how to cope with Them if They do Happen

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