Las Vegas NowI-Team Investigation: Las Vegas Construction Fatalities
By law, state Occupational Safety and Health Administration officials have six months to complete investigations of work-related accidents where employees are killed or injured. Only once those investigations are complete do any of the documents become public record.
The I-Team has been looking at the most recent reports and has a look at some of the findings.
If you talk to OSHA officials at the scene of any worksite accident they will tell you they just can't comment. So, the I-Team requested the last two years worth of complete investigations where workers were killed on the job and received fourteen complete reports consisting of hundreds of pages.
In all but two of these cases safety violations were found and fines were issued by OSHA.
On Oct. 25, 2004, at the Mirage, an employee of Hansen Mechanical fell more than 30-feet from a ladder. The violation was working conditions that created a "trip/fall" hazard.
On Jan, 20, 2005, a worker with Frank Iovino Masonry died when he fell off a truck. OSHA found the employer did not ensure employees followed safety precautions.
On Aug. 2, 2005, a worker for Rice Construction dies on the job of heat stress. Three violations were found because of a lack of training and safety procedures.
On Aug. 10, 2005, an employee of Pipes Paving was run over by a road grader near Centennial Parkway and Losee Road in North Las Vegas. North Las Vegas police responded.
Tim Bedwell, with NLVPD, said, "Some of these areas are dangerous. When you get out here and do this kind of construction with that of kind of vehicle moving around, it's a dangerous job for a lot of these people. Unfortunately, sometimes accidents occur."
The company was cited for failing to promote safety in the workplace.
On Sep. 21, 2005, at what was then called the South Coast casino, a 24-year-old carpenter working for A.J.A. Construction fell 120 feet to his death. A.J.A. was cited for failing to use a safety guard rail and creating a "fall hazard."
On Nov. 22, 2005, again at the former South Coast casino, an employee of R and J Steel fell 60 feet to his death. OSHA found four serious violations including failing to provide the worker with a proper fall prevention system.
On Jan. 3, 2006, an employee of Gast Steel fell 18-feet to his death. OSHA found three violations including failure to provide safety training and failing to secure steel decking.
On Jun. 9, 2006, an employee of Pulte Building Systems was crushed by a machine. OSHA found Spanish-speaking employees did not receive safety training in Spanish.
On, Jun. 26, 2006, at the Cascata Golf Course in Boulder City, an employee was crushed to death by a beverage cart. The company was cited for failing to provide proper training.
The highest fine imposed for any of the fatalities was $6,000.
OSHA does require employers to correct all violations found during its inspections
OSHA declined the I-Team's request for an on-camera interview about any aspect of its operations or how it goes about doing its work.
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