Franklin, NJ — A construction worker was killed when a trench he was working in collapsed at a job site in Franklin, New Jersey, on Monday, May 4, 2015. The accident happened on Nueville Drive, around 4:00 in the afternoon.
The man killed in the accident was identified as Selvin Antulio Lopez-Castillo. The man was running a drainage line around a foundation of a house that is under construction.
Emergency workers found Lopez-Castillo buried up to his hip in dirt. He was extricated from the trench after about an hour and a half, and pronounced about half an hour later.
A preliminary report from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration said that the accident was caused by a lack of shoring inside the trench and a failure by the workers to follow proper safety requirements.
The accident is currently being investigated.
Scene of the Accident
View from the Road
Commentary
Accidents like this are typically handled through an employer’s workers’ comp policy. However, reports make specific mention of a preliminary report done by OSHA, saying that important safety measures weren’t being taken at the site where this accident happened. That alone warrants further investigation. Why wouldn’t these workers have taken these precautions? Do they lack the proper training? Is this a problem on other sites operated by the same company?This could potentially be a much bigger problem, especially if the company was aware that it was going on. If they were aware, they may be opening themselves up to a gross negligence claim. Workers’ comp rules will usually bar an employee from filing a claim against an employer. However, gross negligence claims are different. If an employer knew that something about a job site posed a danger to its employees, yet did nothing about it, it could be found liable for any accidents. Again, further investigation is needed.
— Grossman Law Offices
