RKM Framing: OSHA inspections and violations

Incident on Sep 23, 2002: Employee falls off plank and is partially paralyzed

On September 23, 2002, a construction employee traveled to a residential site to pick up scaffold bracing for his own work site. The residence under constructio n had a garage that occupied the whole space under the two-story home. Originall y, an open excavation was made for the foundation and a 10-foot tall vertical cu t was made at the back of the home. Once the foundation was poured, the owner ha d a company build a cinder block wall to form the wall of the garage. The space between the rear wall and the vertical cut created a trench. Once the framing wa s up, the framer placed a plank over the trench to access the other side, where the scaffold bracing was placed. To get the scaffold bracing he needed, the empl oyee crossed the plank. He placed his left foot on the scaffold plank and then t ook a misstep with his right foot, falling into the trench. He sustained injurie s that resulted in his being paralyzed from the waist down. The employee later s tated that he used the single scaffold plank in the past as a walkway without an y accidents.

Incident on Jul 20, 2001: Employee falls through roof

At approximately 8:40 a.m. on July 20, 2001, Employee #1 and a coworker were she athing crickets over a completed flat structure of the roof system. Employee #1 was walking with plywood to give to the coworker when he heard a crack and fell through the roof. Employee #1 fell 27 ft. to the ground. Employee #1 injuries co nsisted of a fractured pelvis, lacerated spleen, collapsed lung, fractured left arm, and a lacerated left eyebrow.