Queens, NY – A construction worker in Queens was killed when the forklift he was operating overturned on top of him, the New York Daily News reports.
The unidentified 32-year-old man was working outside a Queens Village mosque at about 1:30 p.m. Wednesday when he lost control of his forklift and was thrown from the cab.
Horrified onlookers told police that the forklift landed on top of the construction worker, crushing him beneath it.
Authorities pronounced the man dead at the scene. His name has not been made public.
Forklift Accidents on Construction Sites
According to statistics compiled by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), there were more than 9,050 nonfatal workplace accidents involving forklifts in 2017 alone — and 74 fatalities. The median time lost due to a nonfatal forklift accident that year was 13 days, well above the median of eight missed days for all cases of workplace injury.
Sections 200, 240, and 241(6) of the New York Labor Law provide special protections for workers injured in construction accidents.
They outline certain duties that property owners and contractors owe workers, including the obligation to provide a safe workplace and the obligation to provide certain safety equipment. These sections and others ensure that owners and contractors can be held legally responsible for an injury even if they have hired another company to fulfill safety requirements.
Depending on the specific circumstances of an individual’s forklift injury, they may be able to file a worker’s compensation claim or even a lawsuit.
If a worker is killed on a jobsite, surviving family members could be eligible to claim death benefits under New York Workers’ Compensation Law. In some cases, the family’s estate could sue for wrongful death if New York’s Labor Laws were violated.
Contact Our Construction Accident Law Firm in Queens, NY
If you’ve been hurt or if someone you love has been killed in a forklift accident and you’re facing medical bills, lost wages, and other expenses, contact the New York construction accident attorneys of Oresky & Associates, PLLC right away.
We have more than 30 years of experience fighting on behalf of those who’ve been hurt in our community, and we’ve secured more than $400 million in compensation for our clients.
If you need legal assistance, contact the Queens construction accident lawyers at Oresky & Associates, PLLC at your nearest location to schedule a free consultation.
We have two convenient locations in New York:
Oresky & Associates, PLLC – Queens Office
104-09 Roosevelt Ave
Queens, NY 11368
(347) 507-3884
Oresky & Associates, PLLC – Bronx Office
149 E 149th St
Bronx, NY 10451
(718) 993-9999
