New York Construction Accident & Safety News

Great news last week from Newsday.com regarding building and construction reform in New York City:

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg is promoting his acting buildings commissioner to take the job permanently.

Bloomberg announced on his Friday radio show that he will appoint Robert LiMandri as commissioner. LiMandri was a deputy commissioner under Patricia Lancaster, who resigned under pressure in April during a spate of deadly construction accidents.

The mayor promoted LiMandri a day after the City Council changed the requirements for the job. The commissioner no longer needs to be licensed as an engineer or architect.

The mayor says LiMandri "is really the right guy for the right time."

Great news today courtesy of NY1.com:

Following a series of deadly accidents amid the city’s construction boom, the City Council is again taking up the issue of construction safety today. The council is scheduled to vote on legislation mandating that a site safety manager be present during concrete pouring operations, and that workers take safety courses. They’ll also take up a bill that will change the requirements for becoming the city’s Buildings Commissioner. Under the current law, the position must be held by a certified architect or engineer.

The city council of Jersey City last week unanimously approved a safety manual that would apply to construction regulations throughout the city. The new law will also allow the Construction Code Official for the city to enforce the rules. The new safety manual includes:

• Any structure four stories or higher must have a standpipe that allows water to be pumped to upper floors.
• When a building reaches 150 feet, a temporary fire pump must be installed.
• Rules for preventing materials from becoming airborne in the event of high winds.
• A tower crane can be used on a construction site only after Meyer is shown a plan on placement.
• There are operating procedures under windy conditions.
• And the builders must have a report showing the soil underneath is stable enough to support the weight of a crane.

Good news for construction workers in New York City who were worried over any further crane accidents came over the weekend from Newsday.com:

Authorities say surprise checks of nearly 50 construction cranes around New York City have uncovered no unlicensed operators.

City investigators randomly checked 47 cranes Friday. The Department of Investigation says all the rigs had properly licensed operators, but one crane had an expired permit. A partial stop-work order and a violation were issued.

The checks follow a spike in construction accidents throughout the city, where crane accidents have killed at least nine people since March.

Twenty DOI and Buildings Department staffers fanned out to construction sites in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens and the Bronx.

DOI Commissioner Rose Gill Hearn calls the operation "both a proactive safety measure and a strong deterrent message."

Following up on last week’s news that New York City mayor Michael Bloomberg was going to be signing new laws to protect construction workers in the city, details have emerged on exactly what they entail:

The first (Intro 763-A) classifies "housekeeping violations" — which can cover anything from loose materials to tripping hazards — as immediately hazardous. This designation would create stricter penalties for work sites that tend to be sloppy and require they be fixed promptly. Sites that do not comply with the legislation, which was sponsored by Councilmember Annabel Palma, could face a penalty of $5,000.

The council also approved legislation (Intro 687) requiring the annual inspection of structurally compromised buildings. Buildings recently involved in a fire or that have been threatened structurally by other means will have to be inspected by a professional engineer annually. Inspections must continue annually, according to the bill, until the building is found to be in sound condition.

In addition, the council approved legislation (Intro 793) requiring the more stringent inspection of retaining walls.

The new safety features are now in effect and should help reduce accidents on construction sites.

New York City council has passed several new laws to further increase safety measures at construction sites. From Newsday.com:

After a spike in construction accidents throughout New York City in recent months, the City Council has passed several measures intended to increase safety on building sites.

The package of bills passed Wednesday includes one that would allow buildings inspectors to classify maintenance violations as immediately hazardous. Those violations include problems such as loose material and debris, unsafe storage of combustible materials and falling hazards.

Another bill requires regular structural inspections on buildings that have been weakened by fire or other damaging elements.

A third bill requires better monitoring of retaining walls, mandating structural inspections every five years.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg is expected to sign the bills into law.

In New York City, construction crane accidents have killed at least nine people since March.

Since January, there have been 20 fatalities in New York City surrounding construction accidents. Now to combat the growing epidemic, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration is stepping in to add twelve more inspectors to examine high rise construction sites, cranes, and other high risk areas for accidents.

"There is no one - among regulators, employers, employees, unions and trade associations - who will accept these lost lives as the byproduct of work in a dangerous industry," said Louis Ricca Jr., OSHA’s acting regional administrator in New York. "We must all commit to maintaining safety as the number one job priority each and every day."

Richard Mendelson, OSHA’s area director in Manhattan, added: "The number and frequency of construction-related deaths and accidents in the city, and their associated human cost, is unacceptable. We’re using every available resource and tool - enforcement, outreach, education, persuasion, even peer pressure - to better identify and proactively eliminate hazards, and to compel employers and employees to do likewise."

The new inspectors have been working since June 23.

From NY1:

The City Council is hearing testimony on legislation dealing with construction site and crane safety today.

Acting Buildings Commissioner Robert LiMandri is among those set to testify.

Earlier this month, LiMandri announced a major upgrade of the Building Code, the first in more than four decades. Structural safety regulations are being strengthened, new emergency systems have been put in place, and increased emphasis is being placed on risk to the public.

Twenty people have been killed in construction accidents so far this year, including seven in March’s crane collapse in Turtle Bay. That’s compared to 12 in all of last year.

Following the fatalities in Jersey City on high rise construction projects as well as those in Manhattan involving cranes, the city council in Jersey City will be implementing an ordinance giving codes officials easier access to enforcing guidelines. Fire safety will also be addressed in the wake of a four alarm fire on a construction site.

The manual establishes rules for preventing materials from becoming airborne when the wind is high. Builders must install fine mesh netting on the structure’s exterior and keep floors swept and clean.

The guidelines give [Construction Code Official Ray] Meyer the power to stop work when violations are discovered. He is limited to issuing fines of up to $2,000 under state law, officials said.

The ordinance is going before Jersey City city council today.

As the investigation into the recent crane accident in New York City continues, the legal gauntlet is coming down. New York Times highlights:

The city’s chief crane inspector was arrested on Friday and charged with taking bribes to allow cranes to pass inspection, the authorities said. He was also accused of taking money from a crane company that sought to ensure that its employees would pass the required licensing exam.

The man, James Delayo, 60, the acting chief inspector for the Cranes and Derricks Unit at the city’s Department of Buildings, oversaw the issuing of city licenses for crane operators. The case against him, announced by the Manhattan district attorney’s office and the city’s Department of Investigation, was filed just a week after the city’s second fatal crane collapse in less than three months.

The New York Times continues:

The charges against Mr. Delayo include third-degree bribe-receiving and first-degree tampering with public records, both felonies for which he could face up to seven years in prison. Among the charges was the accusation that he had provided a copy of the crane operator’s exam to a crane company, for which an official involved in the case said Mr. Delayo was paid about $3,000. The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the investigation was continuing, said Mr. Delayo also provided the answers.

As the chief inspector, Mr. Delayo had responsibility for overseeing the inspection of all cranes, including tower cranes, the type that collapsed in the two recent fatal accidents.

Hopefully this will help move the New York City building department one more step away from corruption and closer to paying attention to the safety of workers.