A maintenance worker was fatally injured last week when he was struck by a falling fan at a Port of Rensselaer plant.

Overview of the Fatal Construction Accident

The Times Union reports the worker was performing routine maintenance at an Empire Generating Co. power plant when a large cooling fan fell onto the man, killing him.

According Police Deputy Chief Jim Frankoski, the victim worked for maintenance rigging subcontractor 3D Rigging and Construction, Inc. There were two other workers at the scene who remained unharmed at the time of the accident.

The victim was not identified but was said to be in his 40’s or 50’s. Frankoski said he was unsure if the power plant, located at 75 Riverside Ave., would be shut down due to the fatality.

Maintenance Fatality Statistics

The following information was provided by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC):

• A total of 1,142 grounds maintenance workers (GMWs) were fatally injured at work during 2003–2008, an average of 190 each year.
• GMWs accounted for 3.4% of all occupational fatalities, and 31% of those GMWs were Hispanic or Latino.
• Approximately 83% of the Hispanic or Latino GMWs who died were born outside the United States.
• In 2008, approximately 1.52 million persons were employed as GMWs, constituting 1.0% of the U.S. workforce.
• During 2003–2007, an average of 13.3 per 100,000 employed GMWs died each year, compared with an overall rate of 4.0 fatalities per 100,000 U.S. workers.
• The rate of on-the-job fatal injuries among GMWs has remained elevated relative to other workers for more than 20 years.