December 23rd, 2016 by Thomas J. Henry

Construction Worker Injured after Falling into Hole in NYC

Construction worker providing first aid bandaging to injured worker.

construction foreman applying first aid to injured construction worker

According to the Chelsea Patch, a construction worker was injured in a fall after tumbling into a hole at a construction site in Chelsea, New York, on Wednesday afternoon.

Details of Workplace Injury

Emergency crews responded to a work-related accident at around 2:00 p.m. local time at 221 West 29^th St. between 7^th and 8^th Avenues. Crews discovered a construction worker that fell into a hole approximately 15-feet deep.

The man was freed from the hole after roughly a half hour of maneuvering, according to the Chelsea Patch. He was then transported to Bellevue Hospital via ambulance. A fire department spokesman said the man suffered from minor leg injuries. However, a witness said the man may have broken his legs in the fall.

The building where the accident occurred is under construction to become a 21-story apartment tower, reports the Chelsea Patch. Twenty-nine construction workers in New York City have died in 2016 thus far.

Workplace Accident Statistics

The following information is provided by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA):

4,821 workers died on the job in 2014.
Fatal falls accounted for 359 construction worker fatalities in 2014. The “Fatal Four” leading causes of private sector worker deaths are:
- Falls – 359 out of 899 total deaths in construction in 2014 (39.9%)
- Electrocutions – 74 (8.2%)
- Struck by Object – 73 (8.1%)
- Caught-in/between – 39 (4.3%)
Fatal work injuries involving contractors accounted for 17 percent of all fatal work injuries in 2014.