Accidents Caused by Improper Construction Cleanup

Many accidents in the construction industry happen when work is underway. However, the post-construction scene can be a source of ongoing hazards, especially when not properly cleaned up.

Need to Know:

• Improper cleanup could lead to hazards such as debris, tripping hazards, abandoned equipment, and dust/fumes
• An experienced personal injury lawyer will be able to identify liable parties in an improper cleanup accident
• The attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy have resolved over 100 construction accident cases

In their haste to meet deadlines and move on to the next project, construction companies may fail to conduct a full sweep of the site to remove hazards and debris.

Improper cleanup can also occur during a project – especially complex ones with multiple stages or sites – exposing other workers as well as visitors and passers-by to potential danger.

In This Article:

• Examples of Improper Cleanup
• Types of Accidents Resulting from Improper Cleanup
• How Poor Maintenance of Construction Equipment Leads to Accidents
• Who is Responsible for Cleanup After Construction?
• Preventing Improper Cleanup Accidents – What Can Construction Workers Do?
• Pursuing Compensation for Improper Maintenance or Cleanup
• Free Legal Consultation

Examples Of Improper Cleanup

Cleaning up a construction site is a detailed and intensive process. It requires a significant investment of time and resources. Unfortunately, far too many construction companies cut corners. Their irresponsibility leads to dangers like:

• Debris such as dirt piles, nails, screws, metal scraps, glass shards, or spilled substances
• Tripping hazards such as planks or boards, nails left sticking up, or unleveled surfaces
• Equipment left behind such as power tools, ladders, or scaffolding
• Dust and fumes, including sawdust, silica dust, and off-gassing from construction products

These hazards pose a danger to construction workers, property owners, visitors, and those who pass by the construction site. And in urban areas, construction site hazards may spread to neighboring properties, resulting in harm to innocent people.

Types of Accidents Resulting from Improper Cleanup

Negligent construction site cleanup can contribute to injuries and accidents such as:

• Slip-and-falls
• Getting struck by falling objects
• Head and brain injuries
• Back and neck injuries
• Knee and shoulder injuries
• Impalement
• Lacerations from sharp objects
• Motor vehicle accidents
• Lung ailments, cancer, asthma, and other medical conditions resulting from exposure to toxic fumes or substances
• Crush injuries from improperly secured equipment

Failing to clear debris after a road construction project can be especially dangerous. Debris left in the roadway can contribute to deadly traffic accidents.

How Poor Maintenance of Construction Equipment Leads to Accidents

Improper cleanup is not the only source of serious accidents and injuries on construction sites. So, too, is improper maintenance. Construction sites are teeming with equipment, tools, and vehicles. For that equipment to work well – and safely – it must be properly maintained. Poor maintenance is a major contributing factor to many construction accidents.

Injuries can result from inadequate or poorly performed maintenance of equipment, such as:

• Scaffolding
• Ladders
• Heavy machinery
• Lifts and hoists
• Cables and ropes
• Power tools
• Cranes
• Nail guns
• Generators

Without adequate maintenance, this equipment can become ineffective for its intended purpose – or flat-out unsafe to use. Even personal protective equipment (PPE) and other types of safety gear can malfunction if they are not regularly inspected and safely stored, exposing construction workers to serious harm.

Who Is Responsible for Cleanup After Construction?

After any accident resulting from improper cleanup, determining the responsible party can be a challenging endeavor. It might be the construction company, the site owner or manager, the construction cleanup company, or multiple parties who contributed to causing the accident and are at fault.

Our lawyers can help you determine who was responsible for cleanup after construction – often the construction company, but sometimes the site or equipment owner. Our lawyers conduct intensive investigations using a variety of tools and resources to make sure the right parties are held responsible.

Our investigations include:

• Preparing Freedom of Information requests to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) for their investigation reports, violations, and citations.
• Preparing Freedom of Information requests to the Department of Buildings for building permits, citations, and violations of the subject premises.
• Preparing Freedom of Information requests to attending emergency personnel such as the FDNY, EMTs, and Police Departments.
• Conducting a search of available permits from the Department of Buildings website for accidents that occurred within the five boroughs and/or sending an investigator to counties where records are not readily available online.
• Conducting a search for the proper owners including searching the New York City Automated City Register Information System (ACRIS).
• Searching for tax payment records on the New York City Department of Finance website and/or utilizing commercial tools such as PropertyShark.com.
• Obtaining witness statements
• Obtaining an investigator to accompany a client (if they are physically able to) to the subject location or going on their own to take photos and perform a thorough investigation of the accident location.

 We can then advise you of your options for pursuing financial recovery, whether through a workers’ comp claim, third-party personal injury claim or both.

Preventing Improper Cleanup Accidents – What Can Construction Workers Do?

Construction companies are responsible for ensuring proper cleanup, whether they conduct that work themselves or hire another company to do it. Both companies also have a duty to provide safe working conditions – which means properly maintained equipment and effective PPE.

As a construction worker, you have the right to speak up about safety concerns without facing retaliation. Do not get pressured into performing work under unsafe conditions. By reporting your concerns, you can keep yourself safe and prevent accidents or injuries from befalling other people.

Pursuing Compensation for Improper Maintenance or Cleanup

At Block O’Toole & Murphy, we handle all kinds of construction accident cases, including those resulting from sloppy cleanup. Our award-winning attorneys are known for their skill and precision in handling complex, high-stakes construction accident cases. We represent construction workers and other people who have had the misfortune of sustaining injuries from a poorly cleaned-up construction site.

Any type of accident relating to improper construction cleanup could be grounds for a personal injury lawsuit, a workers’ compensation claim, or both. And if someone tragically lost their life, their surviving loved ones may be able to pursue justice through a wrongful death lawsuit. Because we handle all these types of cases, we can provide the insight and guidance you need to pursue the full financial recovery you deserve.

If you or a loved one has suffered serious harm as a result of improper construction cleanup or maintenance, you deserve compensation. Our lawyers can advise you on the legal paths available to you. Whether that means a workers’ compensation claim or a personal injury lawsuit, or perhaps both, we can be your voice and advocate each step of the way.

You don’t deserve to shoulder the financial burdens resulting from someone else’s negligence. Let us help you pursue justice. We will fight for the financial recovery you need to start rebuilding your life and lay the groundwork for a better future.

Why Work with Block O’Toole & Murphy? Learn More During a Free Consultation.

The personal injury attorneys at Block O’Toole & Murphy have years of experience handling cases for victims of construction accidents and have resolved well over 100 construction accident cases. Select results include the following:

• $15 million settlement in a wrongful death case for the wife and five children of a worker who suffered fatal crush injuries from a large air chiller that fell when its inadequate hoist chains broke
• $11.5 million settlement for a worker who suffered multiple lacerated tendons in his wrist after he used a defective circular saw that did not have a safety guard
• $10.5 million settlement in a wrongful death case for the family of a union worker who was tragically killed when he was struck in the neck by a defective saw that kicked back
• $7 million settlement for a carpenter who was struck in the face by a five-pound metal clamp that was not properly secured
• $3 million settlement for a worker who suffered multiple injuries when he tripped on wires that were left out and fell two feet to a concrete deck below

If you or a loved one has been injured on a construction or work site because of improper cleanup or poor maintenance, our attorneys are ready to help you. Call 212-736-5300 or fill out our contact form to speak to a qualified attorney today about your case. We serve all of New York.